Sheridan Smith’s New Thriller The Castaways Is A Perfect Watch This Christmas

If you’re looking for some good TV to watch that’s a warm escape from wintery Christmas fare, then Paramount’s new series The Castaways is one to look out for.

Starring the BAFTA-winning actress Sheridan Smith, it centres on a woman (The Showtrial actress Celine Buckens) travelling to a secluded Pacific island after she’s alerted to the fact that someone is using her missing sister (Smith)’s credit card. It’s based on the novel of the same name by Lucy Clarke.

What is The Castaways about?

The Castaways follows several similarly sun-drenched dramas this year, like the recent Boat Story on BBC and Paramount+’s own No Escape. Our two main characters in this series are Erin (Buckens) and Lori (Smith), two sisters who’ve decided to go on an ultimate holiday jetting across the world to Fiji, putting the worries of the world behind them. But just before they’re set to take off, the sisters fall out and have a huge argument, with Erin refusing to leave and Lori getting on the flight alone.

The plane departs- but never ends up at its destination, and Lori doesn’t reappear. In the weeks and months since no survivors have been rescued and no wreckage recovered. Lori has no idea what happened- but out of the blue she discovers that Erin’s credit card is being used in a remote area of Fiji, and she seems to still be alive.

‌What else do we know and who else is in the cast?

Lori sets out on the trail to find her sister, after recognising the pilot of her plane on CCTV footage. But does Erin still want to be on speaking terms with Lori? What exactly happened to the plane? And why does Lori feel like there’s something sinister that some people on the island are hiding from her? All will be revealed when the series arrives next month, and you can bet as always that Smith and Buckens will turn in winning performances. Joining them in the cast are Brendan Cowell (Game of Thrones), Lasarus Ratuere (Ghost in the Shell), Charlotte Vega (American Assassin).

While there’s no trailer yet, we do have a few first-look images of Smith looking pretty beaten up as Erin, as well as Buckens as Lori. There’s also an intriguing shot of Erin standing alongside a harpoon-wielding character (Dominic Tighe), hinting at something more sinister on the island.

‌Is there a release date?

‌A definite date for The Castaways to arrive on streaming hasn’t yet been confirmed, but it’s set to arrive in late December on Paramount+.