Wreck (TV series)

Wreck (originally titled Wrecked) is a British comedy horror television series, created and written by Ryan J. Brown. It stars Oscar Kennedy as Jamie, a young man who takes a job on board a cruise ship in order to investigate the disappearance of his sister. It premiered on BBC Three on 9 October 2022, with all episodes airing on BBC iPlayer on the same day.[1] The series received mixed reviews,[2][3][4] but was received favourably by the LGBTQ+ press with Attitude, Gay Times and The Queer Review featuring the series on their lists of Top LGBT TV Shows of 2022.[5][6]

For the American sitcom of a similar name, see Wrecked (American TV series).
Wreck
Promotional poster for the series
GenreSlasher
Comedy
Mystery
Created byRyan J. Brown
Written byRyan J. Brown
Directed byChris Baugh
Starring
ComposerSteve Lynch
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producers
  • Noemi Spanos
  • Tommy Bulfin
  • Chris Baugh
ProducerChris Martin
CinematographyRyan Kernaghan
EditorBrian Philip Davis
Running timeapprox. 45 mins
Production companyEuston Films
Release
Original networkBBC Three
Original release9 October 2022 (2022-10-09) –
present

The show was renewed for a second series in October 2022, set for a 2023 broadcast.[7]

Cast

Main
  • Oscar Kennedy as Jamie Walsh/"Cormac Kelly", a nineteen-year-old who takes a job on the Sacramentum to find out what happened to his sister
  • Thaddea Graham as Vivian Lim, one of Jamie's colleagues who works on the Sacramentum after fleeing her homophobic family
  • Jack Rowan as Danny Jones, Pippa's ex-boyfriend and a member of the entertainment team
  • Anthony Rickman as Olly Reyes, a member of the Sacramentum's crew who befriends Jamie and Vivian
  • Louis Boyer as Sam Rhodes, an officer on the Sacramentum
  • Alice Nokes as Sophia Leigh, queen bee of the Sacramentum's entertainment team
  • Peter Claffey as Cormac Kelly, Jamie's friend with whom he switches identities in order to get onto the Sacramentum
  • Miya Ocego as Rosie Preston, Comac's ex-girlfriend and a transgender woman who works as a Cher impersonator
  • Jodie Tyack as Pippa Walsh, Jamie's sister who disappeared while working on the Sacramentum

Recurring
  • Harriet Webb as Karen MacIntyre, the crew manager of the Sacramentum
  • Warren James Dunning as Officer Beaker, an officer on the Sacramentum and Karen's second-in-command
  • Amber Grappy as Lauren Thompson, one of Jamie and Vivian's colleagues
  • Diego Andres as Jerome Dupont, one of Jamie and Vivian's colleagues
  • Louise Parker as Jenny, one of Jamie and Vivian's colleagues
  • Georgia Goodman as Dolce, a cleaner on the Sacramentum
  • James Phoon as Hamish Campbell, a member of the Sacramentum's entertainment team
  • Ali Hardiman as Bethany-May, a member of the Sacramentum's entertainment team
  • Melissa Dilber and Merih Dilber as Amy #1 and Amy #2, twin sisters who are members of the Sacramentum's entertainment team
  • Ramanique Ahluwalia as Lily Tee, a wealthy guest on board the Sacramentum
  • Ned Costello as Nile, a wealthy guest on board the Sacramentum and Lily's stepbrother
  • Donald Sage Mackay as Henry Allan, the director of the Sacramentum
  • Francis Flores as The Baby, the Sacramentum's tattooist
  • Marcia Lecky as Detective Martinez, a detective who boards the Sacramentum to investigate a suspicious death

Production

BBC Three commissioned Wrecked from Euston Films in March 2021. Written by Ryan J. Brown and directed by Chris Baugh, the six 45-minute episode series is executive produced by Noemi Spanos for Euston Films and Tommy Bulfin for the BBC.[8]

While writing the show, Brown purposefully included explicit LGBT themes (both Jamie and Vivian are gay), explaining that "as a gay man and horror fan, I think horror has always been queer but it's always coded, and subtext. I thought, 'let's do away with the subtext. Let's have explicit representation" and adding that he was used to LGBT characters always being the sidekicks in horror content. Simultaneously, Brown was careful to ensure that Jamie and Vivian's sexuality did not define them as characters but that he did not dismiss this either, noting that "growing up gay has equipped them to be the perfect heroes but the story doesn't need to be about their trauma".[9]

The cast was confirmed in March 2022, with Oscar Kennedy set to star as the lead Jamie. Also part of the cast were Thaddea Graham, Jack Rowan, and Jodie Tyack as well as Louis Boyer, Anthony Rickman, Amber Grappy, Diego Andres, Peter Claffey, Miya Ocego, Warren James Dunning, Ramanique Ahluwalia, and Alice Nokes.[10] In a video posted to Instagram, Brown explained that Jamie is named after Jamie Lee Curtis, best known for playing Laurie Strode in the Halloween film franchise, and Jesse Walsh, the character played by Mark Patton in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, whom he dubbed the "first male scream queen".[11]

Principal photography took place in Northern Ireland.[12]

In October 2022, prior to the first series' broadcast, it was announced that a second series of the show has been in development, and that the show was designed to run for at least three.[13]

Principal photography for the second series returned to Northern Ireland and lasted for four months between May 11[14] and September 1, 2023.[15]

Episodes

All episodes were made available on BBC iPlayer on October 9, 2022, prior to their linear broadcast.[16]

No.Title [17]Directed byWritten byBBC Three airdate[18]
1"Ship of Dreams"Chris BaughRyan J. Brown9 October 2022 (2022-10-09)
Pippa, a worker on the Sacramentum cruise ship, is ambushed and pursued by someone in a duck costume wielding a knife. In order to escape, she jumps from the back of the boat. Three months later, Pippa's brother Jamie signs up to work on the Sacramentum's next tour, having switched places with his friend Cormac, in order to find out what happened to her. He is shocked to find the real Cormac is also on the boat, having snuck aboard to try and get back together with his girlfriend Rosie. Jamie reveals to his colleague Vivian that his father doesn't know he is on the boat and his mother died when he was young. They witness Danny dealing drugs to one of the ship's crew. Sophia and Bethany-May, members of the ship's entertainment team and Pippa's friends, discuss what happened to her and Bethany-May expresses regret but is talked out of leaving by Danny and Sophia. Searching Danny's room, Jamie finds Pippa's phone hidden under the bed. Vivian discovers Cormac in Jamie's room and he reveals his plan to her, stating that the cruise company covered up Pippa's disappearance by saying that she had committed suicide. Jamie and Vivian are initiated into the crew by people in duck masks and Jamie tries to ask Danny about Pippa, who states that he dumped her when she became too clingy. That night, the Duck murders Danny and hides his body in a secret room.
2"Catch of the Day"Chris BaughRyan J. Brown10 October 2022 (2022-10-10)
In a flashback, Pippa reluctantly submits her job application to work on the Sacramentum but is wary of leaving Jamie at home with their alcoholic father. Jamie and Vivian overhear the entertainers being informed that Danny has taken his own life after his body is found by Lauren in the pool. Sophia tells Sam that she and the other entertainers want to stop selling drugs, rattled after what happened to Pippa and Danny. Following this, she finds her photograph in the bathroom with the eyes crossed out. On Pippa's phone, Jamie finds out that she was extorting an unknown man with a fish tattoo in order to get passage off of the ship. In the ship's morgue, Jamie and Vivian discover that Danny was murdered and call the Police. At Cormac's suggestion, Jamie asks Olly to get him a meeting with the ship's tattooist, who tells them that the man with the fish tattoo is an officer. Olly and Jamie then share a kiss. Seeing Rosie, Cormac leaves Jamie's room and runs into Beaker, who invites him to play basketball with the other officers after Cormac lies that his name is Paul. Jamie tells Vivian that he feels guilty about convincing Pippa to work on the Sacramentum. At Danny's vigil, Beaker intimidates Sophia into continuing to sell drugs and she is then pursued by a masked person with a knife. Jamie saves Sophia from the attacker, who escapes and is revealed to be Olly.
3"Showtime!"Chris BaughRyan J. Brown16 October 2022 (2022-10-16)
In the flashback, Pippa and the other entertainers deal drugs on the Sacramentum. In the present, Jamie tries to convince Sophia to come forward about the attack to Detective Martinez, who arrives on the ship to investigate Danny's death. Sophia refuses out of fear that Beaker will blame her for the drug operation, so Jamie agrees to steal the drug supply from the officers in exchange for Sophia telling Martinez the truth. Sophia tells Jamie that Pippa made a lot of enemies on the ship and was paranoid that she was being watched, which caused her to have a nervous breakdown and jump off the boat. When a staff member collapses after taking drugs, Cormac is discovered by Sam during a contraband search but escapes and runs into Rosie, who rebuffs him for lying about not coming on the ship with her. Cormac tries to win Rosie back by revealing Jamie's true identity. The Sacramentum's director Henry Allan pays off Martinez to keep Danny's murder a secret. Olly and Jamie grow closer, but Jamie discovers the disguise used by Sophia's attacker when Beaker searches his room for drugs. Jamie destroys the officer's drug supply but Sophia reneges on her part of the deal. Olly tells Jamie that the mafia forced him to scare Sophia but that he didn't do anything to Danny. Dolce, the head of the mafia, confirms Olly's story and explains that Martinez is leaving the Sacramentum, despite Jamie's protestations. Vivian starts a relationship with Lily, a guest on the ship. After accidentally seeing him have sex with Sophia, Cormac reveals to Jamie that Sam is the man with the fish tattoo that Pippa was extorting. Jerome, one of the crew members, is murdered by an unknown attacker.
4"The Sacramentum Slasher"Chris BaughRyan J. Brown17 October 2022 (2022-10-17)
In the flashback, Pippa comforts Jamie after he is attacked for being gay. Lauren becomes concerned when she doesn't hear from Jerome but Karen brushes it off. Olly tries to build bridges with Jamie and they arrange a date. Sam confronts Jamie and admits he blames himself for Pippa's suicide, stating that she found out he was married after he agreed to run away with her. When Jamie tells Sam that Danny was murdered, he ends things with Sophia and gives Jamie the incident reports about Pippa. Lily's stepbrother Nile warns Vivian that she is dating her for a bet but the two later reconcile. Jamie and Vivian sneak into Pippa's old room, which is now Bethany-May's, and find a map of the ship and a list of names. Rosie and Cormac cause a distraction to allow Jamie and Vivian access to the personnel records, where they find that Karen has logged that all of the people on Pippa's list have absconded, including Jerome. Jamie reports this to Sam, who attacks him and confesses that he chased Pippa and watched her jump from the boat. When Jamie tries to escape, he is corned by the other officers and knocked out by Karen.
5"Needle in a Gaystack"Chris BaughRyan J. Brown23 October 2022 (2022-10-23)
In the flashback, Pippa and Sam have dinner in a guest's room where he admits he loves her. In the present, Jamie wakes up next to Jerome's body in the secret room and overhears Karen ordering Beaker and the other officers to find Vivian. Karen tells Sam to kill Jamie, but he escapes and finds Olly, where he reveals his true identity and tells him about Pippa. Vivian, Rosie, Vivian and Lily meet up with Jamie and Olly and tells them that Sam killed Jerome, Pippa and the others on her list. Vivian states that Jerome's body is the only proof they have of what's happened. Karen threatens the other crew to hunt down Jamie and Vivian. While Vivian hides in Lily's apartment, Jamie and the others use Pippa's map of the ship to locate the secret room and find out the officers have been spying on them. Jamie and Olly reach Jerome's body but are found by Karen, who takes them to Henry's offices where they are forced to watch a housekeeper be murdered by a couple of Whales, wealthy guests who have paid to kill crew members. In the apartment, Nile states that he tried to warn Vivian to stay away from Lily, who then arrives and reveals that Vivian has been selected as the next victim of the Whales' game.
6"Water off a Duck's Back"Chris BaughRyan J. Brown24 October 2022 (2022-10-24)
In the flashback, Pippa texts a mystery person telling them they have enough proof about what is happening on the ship. In the present, Henry reveals that Sam murdered Pippa because she got too close to exposing the operation and then killed Danny out of fear that Pippa had told him what was going on. Henry then murders Sam in front of them for failing. Beaker almost kills Olly to force Jamie to tell him who else they've been working with, but they are saved by Cormac and Rosie. Lily tells Henry that she wants to kill Vivian that night. Jamie reveals the truth to the rest of the crew who, when backed up by Sophia, convinces them to fight back. Olly recruits the mafia, who team up with the crew to take down Beaker and the officers while Jamie goes to rescue Vivian. Karen tries to get Henry to evacuate her from the ship, but he refuses. Lily begins hunting Vivian as Jamie, helped by Karen, races to save her. Lily is killed by her own chainsaw when she is distracted by Jamie bursting through the door. Henry reveals that the Sacramentum is not the only Velorum ship with this kind of operation. The Whales, angered by what has happened, pick up weapons to kill Jamie and Vivian, but are stopped by the arrival of the crew and are subsequently arrested by the Police. Karen flees the ship in the duck costume. Cormac and Rosie resume their relationship and Olly tells Jamie that he owes him a date. Jamie and Vivian resolve to take down Velorum, the company that owns the Sacramentum. Watching the boat from afar, Pippa is revealed to still be alive.

Critical reception

Both Attitude and Gay Times featured Wreck on their list of Top LGBT TV Shows of 2022.[19][20]

In a four-star review, Benji Wilson of The Telegraph praised the premise and Chris Baugh's directing and described the series as being like a punk band at their first gig stating, "Wreck’s energy is infectious. Everyone on the ship is a suspect and no-one can get off. If that’s just Death on the Nile with ADHD, fine: I still want to know whodunit. And why they’re wearing a duck mask."[21] Similarly, Neil Baker from Cinerama lauded BBC Three for commissioning the show, and referred to Wreck's killer duck as a "slasher icon". He called Brown's screenplay "as sharp as the knife our devilish duck wields", noting his ability to reference classic horror properties such as Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer and Friday the 13th while still allowing Wreck to feel "fresh and different to anything else we have seen", and praised the series' humour, pacing, cinematography and queer representation.[22] The show also received four-star reviews from Heat, which declared it a "stylish" and "fresh, vibrant, chilling horror treat", and TVTimes, who noted that the show "delivers jump-scares and witty one-liners with equal aplomb".[23] In their round-up of new shows, NME referred to Wreck as a "comic-horror delight" and a "mischievous slasher in the vein of Scream".[24]

In a wider article praising the series' queer and Asian representation, Alistair James of Attitude stated "the inclusion of LGBTQ characters doesn’t feel tokenistic or as if it’s been done to check a box. Therefore it’s more rewarding to watch as an audience. It feels sincere and heartfelt."[25]

In a review for Autostraddle, Editor Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya praised the central relationship in the show stating, “It’s a series that surprised me and not in the expected avenues of plot twists but rather in its humor and its characters and relationship dynamics. Vivian and Jamie make for one of the best queer friendships I’ve seen on television in a while”.[26]

In a mixed three-star review, Rachel Sigee of iNews praised the "refreshing" queer representation but criticised the show's merging of comedy and horror, stating that "with its original premise, game approach to genre-bending and admirable sense of silliness, Wreck certainly stands out, if not always for the right reasons."[27]

Among more negative reviews from critics, the series received two stars from The Times, The Evening Standard and the Daily Mail, who said "there’s not a great deal to recommend this barking mad drama, which is a cross between a high-school comedy movie and a slasher flick with the killer being Orville the Duck," and described it as “more convoluted with each episode, taking viewers from one daft plot to another like a marble in a pinball machine” and “This camp horror thriller is a bit confused about its identity."[28][29] [30] Brown hit back at the negative reviews, stating on his Twitter, "Nearly all of the “critics” only watched the first episode and have no idea what the show is about."[31]

References
  1. Cannon, Nicholas (17 August 2022). "Wreck — cast, plot, first looks and all we know about the cruise ship comedy horror". WhatToWatch. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  2. "Wreck review – bloodthirsty Orville the duck goes on a high seas murdering spree". TheGuardian.com. 9 October 2022.
  3. Wilson, Benji (9 October 2022). "Wreck, review: Duck (Or dive) into this weird and wacky thriller". The Telegraph.
  4. "Bridgerton's James Phoon on Wreck and defying gay stereotypes". Digital Spy. 9 October 2022.
  5. Maskell, Emily (2022-12-15). "The top LGBTQ TV shows of 2022". Attitude. Retrieved 2023-01-19.
  6. "The 20 best LGBTQ+ shows of 2022". GAY TIMES. 2022-12-21. Retrieved 2023-01-19.
  7. Yossman, K. J. (29 October 2022). "BBC Comedy 'Wreck' Gets Season 2 Order (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety.
  8. Ramachandran, Naman (30 March 2021). "BBC Orders Comedy Horror Series 'Wrecked' From 'The Sister' Producer Euston Films (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  9. "How Wreck is breaking new ground for LGBT representation in horror". 9 October 2022.
  10. Yossman, KJ (1 March 2022). "Oscar Kennedy, Jack Rowan to Lead BBC Comedy Horror 'Wrecked'". Variety. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  11. "Wreck on Instagram: "#WreckBBC writer and creator @brownjryan reveals just SOME horror Easter eggs from the show. There's loads more, so you better keep hunting. 👀 🐣"".
  12. Abbatescianni, Davide (3 March 2022). "Chris Baugh's series Wrecked now in production". CinEuropa. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  13. Goldbart, Max (4 October 2022). "BBC Three's 'Wreck': Second Season Of Horror Comedy In Development As Creator Talks Queer Identity & The Scarcity Of British Slasher Shows". Deadline. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  14. "https://twitter.com/BrownJRyan/status/1656715533843038213". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2023-10-13. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  15. "https://twitter.com/BrownJRyan/status/1697641298717556837". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2023-10-13. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  16. "BBC iPlayer - Wreck". BBC iPlayer. Archived from the original on 9 October 2022. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  17. "BBC Three - Wreck - Episode guide". BBC Programmes. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  18. "Wreck episode guide". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  19. Maskell, Emily (2022-12-15). "The top LGBTQ TV shows of 2022". Attitude. Retrieved 2023-01-19.
  20. "The 20 best LGBTQ+ shows of 2022". GAY TIMES. 2022-12-21. Retrieved 2023-01-19.
  21. Wilson, Benji (9 October 2022). "Wreck, review: Duck (Or dive) into this weird and wacky thriller". The Telegraph.
  22. "Wreck (First Look) - all aboard for Ryan J. Brown's quacking BBC Three cruise ship slasher". 26 August 2022.
  23. "Ryan J Brown on Instagram: "🥹"".
  24. "The scariest horror TV shows you should be watching". NME. 12 October 2022.
  25. James, Alastair (2022-10-05). "Wreck: The cast and creator on creating a 'super gay' horror-comedy". Attitude. Retrieved 2023-01-19.
  26. Upadhyaya, Kayla Kumari (2023-03-07). "Slasher-Comedy Cruise Ship Series "Wreck" Has a Wicked Twist". Autostraddle. Retrieved 2023-04-15.
  27. "Vigil meets Five Nights at Freddy's in uneven slasher comedy Wreck". 7 October 2022.
  28. Midgley, Carol. "Wreck review — cruising for a bruising (From a . . . Killer duck)".
  29. "Wreck on BBC Three review: Hollyoaks on a horror cruise ship". 5 October 2022.
  30. "Wreck; Raising the Mary Rose; Karen Pirie".
  31. Ryan J Brown [@BrownJRyan] (2022-10-22). "Thank you for the nice messages about Wreck and for keeping the secret" (Tweet). Retrieved 2023-01-19 – via Twitter.
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