‘Hijack’ Trailer for Apple TV+ Series Starring Idris Elba

Elba stars and executive produces the new series, which tells the story of a hijacked plane in real time, even as he discovers there’s more to the situation.

The traditional phase in action thrillers is, “we don’t negotiate with terrorists!” But what if you’re stuck on a plane that has been taken hostage, and your main skills is negotiation, forcing you to engage with them? That’s the situation that Idris Elba faces in new Apple TV+ thriller series ‘Hijack’.

Idris Elba in 'Hijack,' premiering June 28, 2023 on Apple TV+.

What’s the story of ‘Hijack’?

Told in real time, “Hijack” is a tense thriller that follows the journey of a hijacked Kingdom Airways plane as it makes its way to London over a seven-hour flight, and authorities on the ground scramble for answers.

Elba stars as Sam Nelson, an accomplished negotiator in the business world who needs to step up and use all his guile to try and save the lives of the passengers — but his high-risk strategy could be his undoing.

And when he starts to dig in what is happening with the situation, he learns that all is far from what it initially seems. Plus, if the passengers decide to stage their own intervention, things could go south –– never a good thing for a plane while it’s in the air –– very quickly.

On the ground, meanwhile, we have Archie Panjabi as Zahra Gahfoor, a counter terrorism officer who is on the ground when the plane is hijacked and becomes part of the investigation.

Archie Panjabi in 'Hijack,' premiering June 28, 2023 on Apple TV+.

Who else is in ‘Hijack?’

The series also stars Christine Adams, Max Beesley, Eve Myles, Neil Maskell, Jasper Britton, Harry Michell, Aimee Kelly, Mohamed Elsandel and Ben Miles.

(L to R) Max Beesley and Christine Adams in 'Hijack,' premiering June 28, 2023 on Apple TV+.

Why Idris Elba got involved in ‘Hijack’

Elba has gone on the record with Entertainment Weekly about what interested him in not only starring but also producing the series.

Here’s what he had to say,

“I wanted to make something that has impact as an actor obviously, but also as a producer in terms of what my taste is. This really ticked so many boxes. It takes a fresh approach to a thriller and hostage situation. There’s an amplified nature of having a ticking time bomb in a plane and what that does to human nature.”

And it expands beyond the confines of the plane to look at the response of others.

Elba talks about the authorities in the show,

“It is an examination of the procedures and attitudes within the government and law enforcement, and that becomes a focal point of the storytelling.”

‘Hijack’ hails from George Kay, who is one of the creators of Netflix series ‘Lupin’, which stars Omar Sy as the famous French gentleman thief character in an update of the story.

And this is just the latest move for Elba to get involved behind the scenes on his projects. He’s also found a new directing gig with action thriller ‘Infernus’, and you can read more about that here.