Gary Oldman’s Jackson Lamb faces a dangerous new nemesis when Hugo Weaving joins the cast as a rogue CIA agent with a score to settle
Few TV dramas in recent memory have racked up the kind of critical acclaim as Slow Horses, the addictive espionage drama based on Mick Herron’s novels set in Slough House.
Slough House, as fans of the show already know, is where British intelligence agency MI5 places spies who find themselves in a grey area, having so royally screwed up that returning to active duty isn’t an option, but neither is being fired outright.
Instead, they’re exiled to a sort of purgatory by working under Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman), a flatulent, rumpled alcoholic whose greasy hair and dishevelled appearance belie the keen mind that once made him one of MI5’s top agents.
In Lamb, the Oscar-winning actor has found the role of a lifetime, a cynical, profane misanthrope who’s also relentlessly driven to solve the puzzles placed in front of him.
The new season promises to take viewers on a wild ride, offering everything from the threat of a serial bomber in London to yet another tragic death on the Slough House team.
However, it’s the addition of a new character that promises to up the ante for Lamb, presenting him with the most formidable adversary he’s encountered in the series thus far.
Enter Frank Harkness, played by Hugo Weaving, known for his roles in The Matrix and Lord of the Rings franchises.
The new season is based on Herron’s London Rules, the fifth book in the Slough House series, and will centre on a suicide bombing “that detonates personal secrets, rocking the already unstable foundations of Slough House.” In the novel, Harkness is an ex-CIA operative who goes rogue, pitting him against Lamb and his plucky band of broken misfit spies.
While details on the fourth season are being kept under wraps, the trailer hints at an “assassination squad,” while River Cartwright (Jack Lowden) must take care of his confused grandfather (played by Jonathan Pryce), a retired MI5 legend. His memories may be fading, but he still holds some serious secrets in his head — could the assassination squad be targeting him?
For Oldman, playing Jackson Lamb has been an actor’s dream, a singularly unique character that he’s overjoyed to disappear into.
“He’s got no filter, he doesn’t care about being judged and there’s really nothing to lose,” the actor explained in an interview with TheWrap. “There’s something very freeing and liberating about playing someone who really doesn’t give a f***.”
In fact, Jackson Lamb has been the cherry on top of an already-successful career. As Oldman said during a recent press junket, he intends to keep portraying the wily spy for as long as he’s able.
“If this were to be the last thing I do — and it’s up to Apple whether they keep us on the air, because they write the cheques — but if they’re happy to keep us on the air, then I’m very happy to do this and do all eight books,” Oldman said in a recent interview with IndieWire. “And since we started, [Mick Herron] has written another one, so who knows? Maybe it’ll be nine books, and I’ll be happy to play Jackson Lamb [in all of them.]”
Oldman also praised the series’ creators, particularly showrunner Will Smith. “We have very good writers, a very good writing team headed by Will Smith,” he said. “We’ve got season four in the can, so now, after four seasons, Will is not only very skilled at putting an elephant in a phone booth — getting [each book] down to a reasonable length [for TV] — but he can hear our voices now, and he’s more familiar with us, so he can write for us. It’s a lovely process. It’s very collaborative. You really couldn’t hope to work with a nicer group of people.”
Also see our previous article with Gary Oldman here.
Slow Horses season final begins streaming Wednesday, September 4 on Apple TV+