Stay Close

Stay Close is a British mystery drama miniseries based on the 2012 Harlan Coben novel of the same title, produced by Red Production Company for Netflix.[1] The eight-episode series was released on 31 December 2021.[2]

Stay Close
Genre
Based onStay Close by Harlan Coben
Written byDanny Brocklehurst
Mick Ford
Charlotte Coben
Victoria Asare-Archer
Directed byDaniel O'Hara
Starring
Composers
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes8
Production
Executive producers
ProducerJuliet Charlesworth
CinematographyGiulio Biccari
Production companyRed Production Company
Release
Original networkNetflix
Original release31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)

Plot

Megan Pierce is a suburban mum living in the fictional suburb of Livingstone, and is hiding a murky past. She has found her soulmate in Dave, and they have three great kids. Ray Levine was once a talented documentary photographer. Losing the woman he loved changed him. Now he is in a dead-end job, playing a paparazzo-for-hire, pandering to rich kid pseudo-celebrities. Michael Broome is a detective still haunted by a cold case from seventeen years ago, when local husband and father, Stewart Green, disappeared without any trace. Green's wife still waits for Stewart to return.

When another man goes missing on the anniversary of Stewart's disappearance, Broome takes the case in the hope of exorcising his demons. Lives are in danger of being ruined, relationships splintered, as Broome's investigations open old wounds, stir up memories, and threaten to expose the truth. Weaving their way through the spaces of what binds these three lives together are a couple of colourful psychopaths, intent on completing their own agenda.

Cast
  • Cush Jumbo as Megan Pierce-Shaw / Cassie Morris, a former stripper, now engaged with three children.
  • James Nesbitt as DS Michael Broome, a burned-out police detective.
  • Richard Armitage as Ray Levine, a photojournalist looking for his missing girlfriend.
  • Sarah Parish as Lorraine Griggs, a mysterious woman from Megan's past.
  • Eddie Izzard as Harry Sutton, a lawyer and a former associate of Megan's.
  • Jo Joyner as DC Erin Cartwright, Broome's detective partner and ex-wife.
  • Youssef Kerkour as Fester, Ray's friend.
  • Daniel Francis as Dave Shaw, Megan's fiancé.
  • Dylan Francis as Jordan Shaw
  • Tallulah Byrne as Laura Shaw
  • Andi Osho as Simona
  • Bethany Antonia as Kayleigh Shaw
  • Rachel Andrews as Bea, Kayleigh's friend.
  • Poppy Gilbert as Barbie
  • Hyoie O'Grady as Ken
  • Jack Shalloo as DCS Brian Goldberg, Broome's superior.
  • Phillip Gascoyne as Chief Inspector Gary Blakefiel
  • Lindsay Armaou as Marlene Flynn
  • Belinda Stewart-Wilson as Sarah Green

Background

In August 2018, American writer Harlan Coben signed a five-year deal with Netflix. Under the deal, Coben would have 14 of his novels adapted as Netflix series, with him serving as producer on all of them.[3][4] Stay Close follows other Coben-created Netflix originals Safe (2018), The Stranger, The Woods (both 2020), The Innocent, and Gone for Good (both 2021).[5]

It's such a pleasure to be setting off on another thrill-ride with Harlan [Coben], Danny [Brocklehurst] and Nicola [Shindler], as we dive into a brand new story about people who keep shocking secrets from their families and closest friends. We're excited to have the opportunity again to hook Netflix viewers around the world with a compelling mystery that will keep people up late into the night.

— Richard Fee, executive producer, Red Production Company[6]

Episodes
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date [7]
1"Episode 1"Daniel O'HaraDanny Brocklehurst31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)
2"Episode 2"Daniel O'HaraMick Ford31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)
3"Episode 3"Daniel O'HaraMick Ford31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)
4"Episode 4"Lindy HeymannCharlotte Coben31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)
5"Episode 5"Lindy HeymannVictoria Asare-Archer31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)
6"Episode 6"Lindy HeymannDanny Brocklehurst, Charlotte Coben31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)
7"Episode 7"Lindy HeymannVictoria Asare-Archer31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)
8"Episode 8"Daniel O'HaraDanny Brocklehurst31 December 2021 (2021-12-31)

Production

Development

The series, comprising eight episodes, was announced by Netflix in October 2020. At the time, Danny Brocklehurst was announced as head writer for the series with Daniel O'Hara as lead Director.[6]

Casting

The main cast were revealed to be Cush Jumbo, James Nesbitt, Richard Armitage and Sarah Parish.[8][9] In February 2021, Netflix announced that several new people would be joining the cast, including Eddie Izzard, Andi Osho, Daniel Francis, Jo Joyner, Bethany Antonia and Rachel Andrews.[4]

Filming

Filming of Stay Close began on 18 February 2021 and wrapped on 30 July 2021.[10][11] The series was filmed in Brinscall, Lancashire, and around Manchester, St Helens, Runcorn, Widnes, Ashton-under-Lyne, Blackpool, Formby, Morecambe and North West England including Runcorn's Silver Jubilee Bridge.[4] Jaume Plensa‘s sculpture Dream was featured heavily.

Music

The score was composed by David Buckley and Luke Richards.[12]

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 92% approval rating with an average rating of 6.2/10, based on 13 critic reviews.[13] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 51 out of 100 based on 7 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[14]

References
  1. Fletcher, Alex (4 February 2021). "If you liked Harlan Coben's The Stranger, you will love Stay Close". BT TV. Archived from the original on 28 February 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  2. Shenton, Zoe (12 October 2021). "Stay Close on Netflix: Cast, release date and everything you need to know". Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  3. Andreeva, Nellie (27 August 2018). "Harlan Coben Inks Overall Deal With Netflix For TV Series & Movie Adaptations Of His Books". Deadline. Archived from the original on 28 May 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  4. Ramachandran, Naman (3 February 2021). "Eddie Izzard, Jo Joyner, Andi Osho Join Cast of Harlan Coben Netflix Drama 'Stay Close' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 3 February 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  5. Wood, Tom (6 March 2021). "New Harlan Coben Adaptation The Innocent Will Hit Netflix On 30 April". LADBible. Archived from the original on 8 March 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
  6. "NEW HARLAN COBEN DRAMA CONFIRMED FOR NETFLIX STARRING CUSH JUMBO, JAMES NESBITT AND RICHARD ARMITAGE". About Netflix. 28 October 2020. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  7. "Shows A-Z – Stay Close on Netflix". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  8. Grater, Tom (28 October 2020). "Cush Jumbo, James Nesbitt & Richard Armitage To Star In Harlan Coben Adaptation 'Stay Close' For Netflix & 'The Stranger' Producer Red". Deadline. Archived from the original on 1 November 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  9. Netflix UK & Ireland [@NetflixUK] (28 October 2020). "Fans of The Stranger and Safe, rejoice! The next Netflix show based on @HarlanCoben's books will be STAY CLOSE – starring Cush Jumbo, Richard Armitage, James Nesbitt and Sarah Parish" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2021 – via Twitter.
  10. RED Production Co. [@REDProductionCo] (18 February 2021). "We started filming on @HarlanCoben's #StayClose today and we couldn't be more excited" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 28 February 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021 – via Twitter.
  11. "Issue 1234 – Thursday, February 18, 2021". Production Weekly. 18 February 2021. Archived from the original on 28 February 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  12. "Trailer released for 'Stay Close' scored by David Buckley and Luke Richards". Cool Music Ltd. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  13. "Stay Close: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  14. "Stay Close: Season 1". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
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