Benedict Cumberbatch as Vincent in Eric – Picture: Netflix
Netflix has teamed up with esteemed playwright Abi Morgan for Eric, a new series described as a tense and surprising thriller set in 1980s New York. Here’s everything we know about Netflix’s limited series Eric, headlined by Benedict Cumberbatch.
The series is created and written by Emmy-winner Abi Morgan, whose credits include her award-winning The Hour and Shame, The Iron Lady, BBC/Sundance TV’s The Split, and many more.
Morgan also worked on the BBC series River which resided on Netflix in most regions as a Netflix Original until it was abruptly removed in November 2019.
Abi Morgan – Picture: Sister
The series was announced by Netflix UK alongside a slew of other UK productions back in November 2021. Other titles announced included Supacell, One Day, The Fuck It Bucket, and Kaos.
The two production companies behind Netflix’s Eric are British studio SISTER (the production company behind HBO’s award-winning Chernobyl) in association with Little Chick Productions. SISTER has previously worked with Morgan on The Split and produced the Netflix BBC co-production Giri/Haji.
Jane Featherstone and Lucy Dyke exec produce for SISTER and Morgan for Little Chick.
What’s the plot of Eric?
Netflix’s Eric is described as a tense and surprising thriller. Here’s the story synopsis for Eric:
“When Edgar, a young boy goes missing in 1980s Manhattan, his grief-stricken father Vincent, a puppeteer on America’s leading kids’ TV show, finds solace through his friendship with Eric, the monster that lives under Edgar’s bed.
In his quest to find the truth to Edgar’s disappearance, Vincent is forced into the dark shadows of a city rife with corruption to discover that the real monsters live much closer to home. Set against the backdrop of the 1980s AIDS epidemic, Detective Ledroit, tasked to uncover internal corruption in the NYPD, finds himself drawn into the search for Edgar, while privately coming to terms with secrets of his own.”
Picture: Netflix
Picture: Netflix
Picture: Netflix
Picture: Netflix
Who is cast in Eric?
The first cast member to be announced was Benedict Cumberbatch.
Famous for his role as London super sleuth Sherlock, Kahn in the rebooted Star Trek franchise, and most recently as Dr. Strange in the MCU, Cumberbatch has been one of the most in-demand actors of the past decade. One of his most recent projects was in Netflix’s Power of the Dog, which earned him his second Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role. To date, Cumberbatch has starred in four projects for Netflix with his most recent being the Oscar-winning adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar by director Wes Anderson.
In Eric, Cumberbatch will play the role of Vincent Sullivan and voice the character of Eric too.
The second actor confirmed for Eric was Donald Sage Mackay, who plays Jerry. Mackay previously starred in the Michael Myers comedy The Pentaverate.
The rest of the main cast was confirmed for the series in February 2023:
- Gaby Hoffmann has been in the role of Cassie Anderson. Eric will be the actress’s official Netflix debut.
- David Denman, who many people will recognize as Roy from The Office has been cast in the role of Matteo Cripp. Duman has already starred in two Netflix projects, such as Heartstrings and The Recruit.
- Dan Fogler aka Jacob Kowalski of the Fantastic Beasts movies will play the role of Lennie Wilson. Eric will be the Netflix debut for Fogler.
- Clarke Peters plays the role of George Lovett. The Wire actor has starred in one Netflix series, The Irregulars.
The remaining cast confirmed are:
- Roberta Colindrez as Ronnie
- Phoebe Nicholls as Anne Anderson
- McKinley Belcher III as Detective Michael Ledroit
- Adepro Oduye as Cecile Rochelle
- Alexis Molnar as Raya
- Bamar Kane as Yuusuf Egbe
- Ivan Morris Howe as Edgar Anderson
What’s the production status of Eric?
We previously reported that production was reportedly planned to begin in the UK in November 2022. Filming began around that time and eventually wrapped by late April 2023.
The series was shot in Budapest, Hungary, and New York, USA.
How many episodes will be in Eric?
The limited series will consist of six episodes in total.
What’s Eric’s Netflix release date?
Netflix confirmed in March 2024 that the series will be arriving globally on the service on May 30th, 2024.
Are you looking forward to Eric on Netflix? Let us know in the comments.
