SkyShowtime is hoping to draw viewers in with its new thriller, *The Iris Affair*, spearheaded by *Luther* creator Neil Cross. The series, starring Niamh Algar and Tom Hollander, follows a woman who steals dangerous technology and ignites a high-stakes pursuit across Europe. Cross recently discussed his unique creative process and influences, offering insight into the making of the series now streaming on SkyShowtime [[1]].
SkyShowtime is betting big on a new thriller, The Iris Affair, from Luther creator Neil Cross. The series, starring Niamh Algar and Tom Hollander, promises a twisty, suspenseful ride for viewers. The streaming platform is hoping the series will draw in audiences looking for a compelling new mystery.
The story centers on Iris Nixon (Algar), a brilliant and enigmatic woman who unravels a series of online puzzles, leading her to a piazza in Florence and a fateful encounter with charismatic businessman Cameron Beck (Hollander). Beck invites Iris to join him in unlocking a highly secretive and powerful piece of technology, sparking her curiosity. She accepts, but when Iris discovers the dangerous potential of the technology, she steals the activation sequence and vanishes.
This sets off a relentless pursuit, from a remote Sardinian cabin to the bustling streets of Rome, as Cameron races to find Iris in a high-stakes game where trust is a liability and failure could be catastrophic. Cross recently discussed his latest project, now available on SkyShowtime.
“Essentially, I only write for myself,” Cross explained when asked about his writing process. “Even when I hire other writers to work with me, I always tell them I’m only interested in reading what they write independently of whether it will be published or not. I started writing at six or seven years old, making comics where the drawings were easier than the speech bubbles. I never knew what to write, so I flipped it around, started writing dialogue and then filling in the drawings.”
Visually, the series is a departure from some of Cross’s darker previous work, boasting a brighter aesthetic. When asked if he anticipates critical acclaim, he responded, “I completely agree that there’s a mystery I constantly face. I think people confuse seriousness with intellectual weight. But works that deal with fundamental ideas of our existence, the masterpieces of our race, wouldn’t be anything without humor, because it’s an essential part of who we are.”
He continued, “I haven’t read Don Quixote, but it’s the best, the first, the greatest novel of humanity, and it’s fundamentally comedic. I’m going to get in trouble: in the most excellent places in our industry there are people who are insecure about their intelligence. They believe that, to compensate for that insecurity, they must be excessively serious and dark.”
“So, creating something like The Iris Affair means you’re at a point in your career where you don’t have to prove anything to anyone?” Cross was asked.
“I don’t care what all these people think,” he stated. “As I mentioned, I grew up surrounded by comics, at a time when reading comics was marginal, it didn’t get you many friends. In the eighties, I played Dungeons & Dragons non-stop. I miss it a lot. I never sought validation from a higher echelon, from an intellectual elite; their judgment doesn’t interest me at all.”
What about his audience? Does he feel a connection with fans who eagerly await his next project? “I don’t have a relationship with them, I spend little time on the Internet, I don’t live there. I’ve never looked at Twitter and I don’t understand what Instagram is. I don’t interact with them that way. I know they exist, but if I’m honest, I think praise can harbor a particular danger, just like insults.”
“The only thing I can do is keep going in my solitude, in my little boat, and tell my stories,” Cross said. “We had a premiere in New York for the Luther movie and it was great, there were a lot of fans. But beyond occasional events like that, I remain in the mystery, as far away from the attention of others as I can.”
Cross also cited Nigel Kneale, a British television screenwriter known for his “cosmic horror,” as a major influence. “He created something that today we could define as ‘cosmic horror.’ He designed very ambitious, commercial, and terrifying films and series, and he did it very successfully, he knew how to connect with the public. He had a recurring character called Bernard Quatermass, an astronaut who returned to earth but, in his travels, had ceased to be the man we once knew. I think he was the best screenwriter that the United Kingdom has ever had. I’m not going to say he’s a copy, but Doctor Who wouldn’t have existed without Nigel Kneale and without Quatermass.”
Returning to The Iris Affair, the conversation turned to the central characters. “What’s interesting, let me think. With Iris, I knew who she was pretty early on. She has a lot of Hitchcock, Patricia Highsmith, but she’s very particular, contradictory. The idea of the woman as an anti-hero hasn’t been explored much. I had all those references in my head and thought it would be impossible to find the perfect actress, until my team told me, ‘you’re looking for Niamh Algar.’ We did a test with her the next day and there she was, exactly what I was looking for, we didn’t see any other actress.”
“Cameron Beck was the opposite system, I had a much longer process where I fell in love with Tom Hollander. He offered humanity, charisma and depth to a character that a less talented actor would have squandered.”
Cross recalled an anecdote about Michael Caine, who starred in The Marseille Contract, filmed in the South of France. Caine reportedly didn’t even read the script, opting instead for five weeks in the French sunshine. “Is it easier to start writing a project if, like in The Iris Affair, it takes place in Italy or somewhere sunny?” Cross was asked.
“The answer is: infinitely,” he replied. Before concluding, he shared his favorite Michael Caine story.
“Please.”
“Someone asked him if he had seen Jaws: The Revenge, which he had starred in. And he replied, ‘No, but I’ve seen the house he bought my mother, and it’s incredible.’”
The Iris Affair is currently streaming on SkyShowtime.
