Oscar-winner Cillian Murphy and “Small Things Like These” director Tim Mielants are reuniting for a new Netflix drama, “Steve,” with Murphy playing a headteacher struggling with mental health issues while trying to inspire and mentor at-risk students who attend a last-chance reform school in the mid-90s.
The streamer has kindly sent us over a first-look image from the upcoming film to share alongside a casting update and when audiences can expect to start watching the new drama starring Murphy and Jay Lycurgo. As the pic is heading to limited release in September before dropping on October 3 on the service.
Other cast members include Simbi Ajikawo, Emily Watson, Douggie McMeekin, Youssef Kerkour, Luke Ayres, Joshua J Parker, Araloyin Oshunremi, Tut Nyuot, Tom Moya, Ahmed Ismail, Joshua Barry, Archie Fisher, Ben Lloyd-Hughes, Priyanga Burford, George Fouracres, Marcus Garvey, Ruby Ashbourne-Serkis, and Roger Allam.
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Author Max Porter adapted his own Sunday Times best-selling novel “Shy” into the film’s script with a producing team that features Alan Moloney, Murphy, Tina Pawlik, and Porter as executive producer.
An official logline for “Steve” courtesy of Netflix:
Set in the mid-90s, Steve is a reimagining of Max Porter’s Sunday Times bestseller “Shy.” The film follows a pivotal day in the life of headteacher Steve (Murphy) and his students at a last-chance reform school amidst a world that has forsaken them. As Steve fights to protect the school’s integrity and impending closure, we witness him grappling with his own mental health. In parallel to Steve’s struggles, we meet Shy (Lycurgo), a troubled teen caught between his past and what lies ahead as he tries to reconcile his inner fragility with his impulse for self-destruction and violence.
Of course, Murphy is coming off a massive success with the Christopher Nolan-directed R-rated atom bomb biopic “Oppenheimer.” The Irish actor walked away with a Best Actor statue at the Academy Awards, and the movie, scooped up by Universal Pictures in a heated bidding war, ended up earning a spectacular $975.8 million at the worldwide box office (thanks in part to the viral theatrical phenomenon known as “Barbenheimer”).
“Steve,” looks like yet another promising performance from Murphy and his fellow cast members. That full first-look image can be viewed below, and we can’t wait to see a trailer in the coming months.
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