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“No one gets to take from me and live. No one,” vows Sugar Goodson (Stephen Graham), a dangerous criminal kingpin, in the first teaser trailer for A Thousand Blows. The forthcoming drama is the latest TV offering from Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight. Like his most successful and beloved TV effort, too, A Thousand Blows will both explore England’s history and immerse viewers in a criminal underworld full of tension, deceit, and violence.
Inspired by numerous real-life stories, the series is set in the East End of London in the 1880s. It follows two friends from Jamaica, Hezekiah (Malachi Kirby) and Alec (Francis Lovehall), as they find themselves fighting for their lives in East London’s criminal underground. Once there, Hezekiah and Alec not only cross paths with Mary Carr (Erin Doherty), the leader of an all-female gang, but also make an unfortunate enemy of Graham’s Sugar, whose criminal viciousness is reflected in his skill as an illegal boxer.
In addition to Graham, Kirby, Lovehall, and Doherty, the cast for A Thousand Blows also includes Ziggy Heath, Jason Tobin, James Nelson-Joyce, Tom Davis, and Ella Lily Hyland. The series recently premiered its first two episodes at this year’s London Film Festival. You can check out its debut trailer below.
Knight is one of the busiest creators working in Hollywood right now. One need only look at his slate of 2024 releases, which includes two high-profile projects he wrote in the Elisabeth Moss-led FX espionage thriller The Veil and Pablo Larraín’s new Angelina Jolie-starring Oscar contender Maria, for proof of that. Even by Knight’s standards, though, 2025 is shaping up to be a particularly noteworthy year.
Not only is A Thousand Blows expected to make its highly anticipated premiere next year but Netflix is also set to release Knight’s long-awaited feature film follow-up to Peaky Blinders. That project, titled The Immortal Man, began filming in late September with Heart of Stone director Tom Harper at its helm and Cillian Murphy officially back as Peaky Blinders anti-hero Tommy Shelby. The film, which is also set to star Graham, Rebecca Ferguson, Barry Keoghan, and Tim Roth opposite Murphy, boasts a screenplay penned by Knight.
There is, obviously, huge anticipation surrounding The Immortal Man‘s release. It looks like A Thousand Blows has the potential to be another breakout smash hit for Knight, though. At least, if its first teaser is any indication, it certainly looks like it’ll deliver similar vibes and thrills as Peaky Blinders. That possibility alone makes it one of next year’s most promising TV titles.
A Thousand Blows is set to premiere on Hulu sometime in 2025.
