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Tom Hiddleston + Olivia Colman. Credit: AMC.

 We’re back with part #3 of our Meet The Night Manager Cast!

The Night Manager is coming direct from a successful run on BBC One to America on 19 April 2016 (my birthday!) thanks to AMC and what a cast the creators have assembled including Hugh Laurie (“House, M.D.”), Tom Hiddleston (“Thor”, “I Saw the Light”), and Elizabeth Debicki (“The Man from Uncle”). But what about the rest of this stellar cast? Today we bring you the superb BAFTA-winning Olivia Colman.

Olivia Colman. Credit: AMC.

Olivia Colman, winner of 2013 & 2014 BAFTAs for Best Leading Actress, Best Supporting Actress and Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme, stars as new character, Angela Burr, who was brought to the canvas of Susanne Bier’s The Night Manager.

Her other credits include:

  • Broadchurch w/ David Tennant (BAFTA winner for best leading actress)
  • Thomas & Friends series (voice: Marion)
  • The Iron Lady w/ Meryl Streep
  • Rev. w/ Tom Hollander (BAFTA nominated)
  • Shakespeare ReTold w/ Billie Piper

In John le Carré‘s novel, The Night Manager, there is a Leonard Burr, an ex-SIS Chief who approaches Pine (Tom Hiddleston) about setting up a sting on Roper (Hugh Laurie). But 20 years later, Director Susanne Bier said:

“We had decided that Burr
should be played by a woman, rather than a man as in the book, because
we thought there was an exciting chemistry between a woman and a man
engaging in the power struggle that Roper and Burr have.” (Credit: Telegraph UK)

Another change was made by the production team to incorporate Colman’s own pregnancy into her character’s biography.  Colman had not yet announced her pregnancy when she signed on to star as Burr in The Night Manager. And unlike how many shows hide a woman’s pregnancy that doesn’t jive with the storyline (think Kerry Washington as Olivia Pope in ABC’s Scandal), the screenwriting team adapted the story to include her pregnancy. How nice for her! And for those curious, she safely delivered of a baby girl (her first daughter with husband, Ed Sinclair) last year.

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So what do you think of a white middle-age male role being transformed into a white middle-age pregnant female? Is that a worthy time-appropriate change? Or perhaps you’d like a woman of colour? Or a man of colour?

The Night Manager is available to stream on BBC’s iPlayer until 26 April 2016 and makes its American premiere at AMC on 19 April 2016.
 
The Joyous Living has not had a chance to preview or review The Night Manager nor have we looked at spoilers. According to the Parent Guide on IMDb, however, the show has nudity, sex, violence, and strong language (including the F word).