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Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero: Everything you need to know About the Thrilling new Mystery Series
Get ready for a thrilling new mystery to unfold with the highly anticipated Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero! The limited series is set to captivate viewers with its intricate plot and unforgettable characters as it heads to the streaming screens of the US and Canada. Recently, BritBox dropped a tantalizing trailer and key art, giving fans a first glimpse of the gripping drama that promises twists and turns at every corner.
The show follows in the footsteps of other celebrated Christie adaptations, and fans can’t wait to dive into this chilling tale. The excitement is mounting as the release date draws near, with streaming platforms offering a fresh, suspense-filled addition to their lineup.
Curious to know what makes Towards Zero stand out? Get ready for a rollercoaster of secrets, betrayals, and shocking revelations. As new details surface, we’ll be keeping you updated on everything you need to know about the show. Keep reading to discover what makes this adaptation one that’s impossible to miss!
Release date & Where to Watch
Agatha Christie's Towards Zero will premiere in the US and Canada on BritBox on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, with a special three-day event. New episodes will air on April 17 and 18.
The series previously aired in the UK on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in March.
What is the plot of Towards Zero?
In 1936 England, following a scandalous celebrity divorce, British tennis star Nevile Strange and his ex-wife Audrey make the shocking decision to spend the summer at Gull’s Point, their childhood home and the coastal estate of Nevile's aunt, Lady Tressilian. Tensions are high with unfinished business between the former lovers and the presence of Nevile’s new wife, Kay.
As the family dynamics unfold, the estate becomes a boiling pot of secrets and grudges, with a lady’s companion, a mysterious valet, an exiled cousin, a family lawyer, an orphan, and a French conman all playing key roles. What begins as a tense reunion quickly escalates into murder.
Inspector Leach is tasked with unraveling a complex web of jealousy, deceit, and dysfunction, hoping to solve the crime before more lives are lost. The explosive love triangle and the formidable presence of Lady Tressilian set the stage for a thrilling investigation into dark family secrets.
Who’s in the cast of Towards Zero?
- Anjelica Huston (The Witches) as Lady Tressilian: Lady Tressilian is portrayed as the commanding force at the center of a fractured household.
Describing her character, Anjelica Huston said, “Lady Tressilian is the matriarch of a very disjointed, unruly family. They have lots of problems and it’s up to her to try and corral everyone – or at least that’s how she sees it."
"She has a way of getting everyone to do what she wants them to do – commandeering the ship and running it the way she sees it should be run. It was a lot of fun to play Lady Tressilian, she runs the whole place from her roost, her bed, which is a very nice way to act. I basically went onto set and rolled into bed every day! It was the opposite of my usual function,” Huston added.
- Ella Lily Hyland (Black Doves) as Audrey Strange: In the first episode, Audrey divorces her sports star husband, Nevile, and is revealed to be Lady Tressilian's niece.
"Audrey moved to Gull’s Point when she was a kid because she was an orphan," said Hyland about her character. "Her and Nevile were together from a really early age – a sibling relationship that turned into something romantic.” (via BBC)
"We meet Audrey as she’s filed for divorce from her marriage with Nevile. She’s very much a woman wronged. I think she’s in pursuit of her freedom because they have a very toxic, twisted, exhausting relationship dynamic,” she added.
On the dynamic between Audrey, Nevile, and Kay, Hyland said, "A big aspect of Nevile and Audrey’s relationship is that they never want to be bored. Nevile is with Kay now, but he feels he needs to keep playing this game with Audrey and they communicate that in a weird and twisted way.”
"I definitely think there’s a part of Audrey that is attracted to Kay – because she’s with Nevile, or maybe separately anyway. It’s a weird taboo of feelings that can happen in that dynamic,” she added.
- Oliver Jackson-Cohen (The Haunting of Hill House, Surface) as Nevile Strange: A successful tennis player embroiled in a very public divorce after cheating on his wife, with Lady Tressilian being his aunt.
"He’s sort of the David Beckham of his time," said Jackson-Cohen about his character. "His wife, Audrey, and him are a celebrity couple. Always in the papers, much beloved,” he added.
"You’d probably describe him as the arrogant cad – he’s a very good sportsman and is beloved by the public, but he has an incredibly complicated emotional life at home,” he further added.
On Nevile's relationship with Audrey, he said, "They share this intense desire to win. At anything. I think that’s borne from the two of them growing up together. It’s a very Burton and Taylor-esque. It’s a constant exploration of co-dependence and how ugly and dangerous it can get. They take such joy out of the playing of the game – no matter how much it costs them, they cannot stop playing."
- Anjana Vasan (Black Mirror, We Are Lady Parts) as Mary Aldin: She works as Lady Tressilian's companion.
"When we first see her she is in a place of real frustration, life feels like it has passed her by a little bit," said Vasan about her character. "There is also this glimmer of hope that is present – you feel like there are two paths Mary can go on in the beginning of the story,” she added.
- Mimi Keene (Sex Education) as Kay Elliot: Nevile's new wife
"Kay is more worldly than people perceive her," said Keene about her character. "She has life experience. Kay gets a lot thrown at her and stands strong. I don’t think I’d be as strong as Kay, I think I’d cry a little bit at times when she would stand tall,” she added.
On the love triangle, Keene said: "I don’t think Kay is expecting the connection between Nevile and Audrey to remain so strong. Nevile’s justification to get Kay on the honeymoon is the fact that it’s a very special place to him, but it’s also a very special place for Audrey because they grew up there together. That’s Nevile’s way of getting Kay to agree to go to this house."
- Jack Farthing as Thomas Royde: Nevile and Audrey's cousin
"It’s 1936 in Malaya and he has been given the task of managing a rubber plantation but he's certainly not built for that task," said Farthing about his character. "He's definitely not management material and he's struggling and running out of money... so he's desperate for an excuse to be able to come home and be bailed out financially, so we find him in this state of panic and he’s hunting for a solution,” he added.
"I think he is a product of arrested development – he’s never moved on from a period in his childhood where things took a sort of dramatic turn for him. When Thomas is twelve he witnesses a traumatic event that he then tries to speak the truth about but is sort of silenced by the family. They want to cover it up, so he lives with that still now as a 30-year-old man. There is definitely a level of attention and frustration and repression in him that can be quite tense,” he further explained.
- Grace Doherty (Casualty) as Sylvia: She is Mr. Treves's ward and forms a bond with Leach.
- Khalil Ben Gharbia as Louis Morel: A flirtatious young man who meets Inspector Leach at the hotel bar in the first episode.
"Louis is a playboy kind of guy," said Gharbia about his character. "He’s a lounge lizard – that’s what someone told me and I kept it in my head. What I love about him is that he brings me to a place of sensuality that’s really refreshing in a story like this,” he added.
- Matthew Rhys (The Americans) as Inspector Leach
"He’s a very interesting character, a man of great depth and sensitivity," said Rhys about his character. "His trauma from the First World War has isolated him to such a degree that he is very much on the outside and periphery of almost every social circle. That gives him great advantages as a police inspector to look in and observe what is happening around him,” he further explained.
- Clarke Peters (The Mantawauk Caves, The Man Who Fell to Earth) as Frederick Treves: The Tressilian/Strange lawyer
"He knows the secrets, knows where the money is hidden, knows who wants what," said Peters about his character. "He is the confidant of the head of the family, Lady Tressilian. If he were to be put on the stand, he would probably bring this family to ruin. He knows the secrets that Lady Tressilian would prefer not to deal with,” he added.
He further added, “He knows Thomas Royde’s secrets, and I believe empathises with him. I believe he understands Nevile and Audrey from childhood and has seen how their relationship works – the motivation of children and that dynamic. I think he understands their secrets more than they do themselves!”
- Adam Hugill (Sherwood) as Mac: Mac is a mysterious and enigmatic character who ingratiates himself into Nevile's life, ultimately becoming his personal valet.
As actor Hugill explained, "He worms his way into Nevile’s life and becomes his personal valet through interesting means. It’s quite enigmatic and mysterious – that’s how it’s meant to be for the audience too."
"Mac has a bit of a troubled past and as with all Agatha Christie characters he’s has a secret which unravels slowly during the story. He’s quite a stoic, quiet, man of few words, but calculated at the same time,” he further explained.
- Jackie Clune as Mrs. Barrett
- James Brooker as Peter James
- Lyle Wren as Young Neville
- Alexander Cobb as DS Miller
- Peter Forbes as Mr. Coles
- Robert Bowman as Hospital Doctor
- Michael Culkin as Judge
Is There a Trailer for Towards Zero?
The trailer for BritBox's Towards Zero, released a month ago, offers a glimpse into a gripping 1936 murder mystery set at the coastal estate of Gull’s Point.
The trailer hints at the psychological complexities of the characters, with scenes depicting strained interactions and underlying animosities. Inspector Leach is introduced as the detective tasked with unraveling the web of secrets and lies that permeate the estate. The visuals showcase the opulent yet claustrophobic setting, emphasizing the impending sense of doom.
A notable line from the trailer encapsulates the suspense: "Drawing us…unwitting… towards zero." This phrase suggests an inevitable convergence of events leading to a fatal climax, aligning with the story's theme of a countdown to murder.
Check out the BBC trailer below.
What Novel is Towards Zero Based on?
Towards Zero is based on Agatha Christie’s 1944 novel of the same name. Known for creating iconic detectives like Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, Christie also introduced readers to Superintendent Battle, the lead investigator in Towards Zero and a recurring character in four other novels.
The story begins when Lady Tressilian invites her late husband’s ward and his new wife to her home for the summer—only for him to bring along his ex-wife as well. What starts as a tense gathering turns deadly after the death of a guest and Lady Tressilian herself, prompting Battle and his nephew to unravel the mystery.
How does the Towards Zero Series Differ from the Novel?
One of the biggest differences between the Towards Zero series and Agatha Christie’s original novel is the absence of Superintendent Battle. In his place, the series introduces a brand-new character: Inspector Leech, played by Matthew Rhys, who leads the investigation into the deaths.
Screenwriter Rachel Bennette explained that this change was inspired by Christie’s own approach in the novel, where the detective takes a step back from the spotlight—a notable shift from her usual Poirot- or Marple-led mysteries. “Battle spends a lot of the case wishing he was Poirot – and then she splits the deducing duties between Battle and the character of Angus MacWhirter who is a guest at the hotel, and a wonderfully original Christie creation,” she said. (via Cosmopolitan)
“This is all designed to serve the plot, but it also led me to feel that what interests her most in this book is character and theme, and so I found myself leaning into the richness of Angus’ character as the investigator figure,” she added.
The series took that idea further, creating the composite character of Inspector Leech, who Bennette says draws from “Battle, Angus MacWhirter and Battle’s nephew Jim Leach who is the local policeman in the book.” With classic Christie DNA still intact, this bold reinterpretation gives the story a fresh investigative lens.
Filming Details
Filming for Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero began in the summer of 2024, taking place in and around Bristol as well as along the scenic Devon coast (via 4Filming).
Behind the Scenes
Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero is an upcoming three-part crime drama (3x60) adapted by Rachel Bennette and directed by Sam Yates. Produced by Rebecca Durbin, the series is a co-commission between the BBC and BritBox International, brought to life by Agatha Christie Limited and Mammoth Screen (part of ITV Studios). FIFTH SEASON is handling global distribution.
Executive producers include James Prichard for Agatha Christie Limited; Sheena Bucktowonsing and Damien Timmer for Mammoth Screen; Danielle Scott-Haughton for the BBC; and Jon Farrar, Stephen Nye, and Robert Schildhouse for BritBox International.
“This is a very special production. Rachel has done an extraordinary job on making my great-grandmother's story even more dramatic, intense and troubling. Add in a cast of this calibre and viewers are in for a real treat,” said James Prichard, Executive Producer for Agatha Christie Limited. (via Agatha Christie website)
“These are among the richest and most complex of Christie’s characters, and I was captivated from the first by the charisma, in particular, of her female characters,” said writer Rachel Bennette. “It has been thrilling to bring them all to life in this disturbing tale of truth and lies, love and hate, a story which unfolds amidst the dark, cinematic glamor of the 1930s, yet feels startlingly of our time,” she added.
Director Sam Yates added: “It has been an honor to bring this most psychological and sensual of Agatha Christie’s stories to vibrant life with a peerless cast of actors and an extraordinary team. Audiences are in for a propulsive, intoxicating ride into the dark hearts of some of Christie’s most irresistible characters.”
Hollywood icon Anjelica Huston, who stars as Camilla, Lady Tressilian, said: “I have long been a fan of Agatha Christie and the murder-mystery genre and always love the opportunity to film in England. I am thrilled to be working with director Sam Yates and this wonderful cast, and excited to play the clever and dignified Camilla, Lady Tressilian.”
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