Produced by NORTHERN SISTER part of SISTER group (This Is Going To Hurt, Chernobyl, Landscapers), and written by debut screenwriter Andrew Buchan, who is best known for his acting roles in Broadchurch, The Honourable Woman and Better, Passenger explores a close-knit community who are unwilling to face their fears of change, of outsiders and of the unknown. Originally commissioned for ITVX the series will launch on ITV1 and ITVX next month and Britbox International later this year.

Set in the fictional small Northern town of Chadder Vale, the cast is led by BAFTA award-winning Wunmi Mosaku (Loki, Damilola, Our Loved Boy, Lovecraft Country) who plays Former Met Police Detective Riya Ajunwa as she investigates a series of strange and inexplicable crimes that have the townsfolk spinning on an axis. Riya arrived in the quiet town of Chadder Vale five years ago and has since been searching for something, anything that will make her feel alive again. Then one night local girl Katie Wells (Rowan Robinson, So Awkward) mysteriously disappears. The town barely has time to register her absence before she reappears the next day, apparently safe and sound. The townsfolk ask few questions and normal life resumes. But for Riya, a relative outsider to the Chadder Vale way of life, none of this sits right. As a series of strange happenings and increasingly shocking crimes start unfolding within the town, the resident’s resort to short-sighted theories and blame outside influences such as the fracking site and its manager Jim Bracknell (David Threlfall, Shameless). As things become stranger, Riya fights hard to convince the villagers that all is not as it seems. But what are they so afraid of?

Further casting includes Jo Hartley (After Life, In My Skin) as Chief Constable Linda Markel, Sean Gilder (The Gold, Shameless) as Tony Corrigan, Debbie Rush (Coronation Street, Brassic) as forensic analyst Terry Jackson, Daniel Ryan (The Bay) as Derek Jackson, Barry Sloane (Six) as Eddie Wells, Natalie Gavin (Gentleman Jack) as Joanne Wells, Nico Mirallegro (My Mad Fat Diary, Rillington Place) as Kane Jackson, Hubert Hanowicz (This Is Going To Hurt) as Jakub Makowski, Jack James Ryan (Coronation Street) as John Trowbridge, Matilda Freeman as Lilly Wells, Shervin Alenabi (Baghdad In My Shadow) as Mehmet Shah, Ella Bruccoleri (Call The Midwife) as Ali Day and Arian Nik (The Bay) as Nish Chowdry – all of whom form the close-knit community that is sent spinning on its axis following a series of strange and unnatural crimes, in the small Northern village of Chadder Vale.

Passenger is executive produced for ITV1, with BritBox International and ARD Degeto as co-production partners, by Lucy Dyke (The Split, Eric) and Simon Maloney (Time, I May Destroy You) for Northern Sister and Jane Featherstone (This is Going to Hurt, Chernobyl) for SISTER. Andrew Buchan is creator, writer and associate producer. The series is produced by Sumrah Mohammed (The Split 3) and directed by Lee Haven-Jones (The Bay, The Feast) and Nicole Charles (The Following Events are Based on a Pack of Lies). ITV’s Head of Drama, Polly Hill, oversees production of the series from the channel’s perspective with Reemah Sakaan and Stephen Nye overseeing on behalf of BritBox International. Christoph Pellander and Sebastian Lückel are co-executive producers for ARD Degeto.

Passenger is distributed by All3Media International.