Binge-worthy: Idris Elba thriller Hijack still quite the ride despite some turbulence
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British actor Idris Elba plays a traveller who finds himself in the middle of a plane hijack in the seven-episode miniseries, Hijack.
PHOTO: APPLE TV+
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Hijack
Premieres on Apple TV+ on Wednesday
3 out of 5 stars
Hijack – a new show written by George Kay, who created the hit French Netflix thriller Lupin (2021 to present) – sees Idris Elba as a passenger on a flight that does not go as planned.
Here are a few reasons to tune into the seven-episode British miniseries on Apple TV+, which co-stars Archie Panjabi (The Good Wife, 2009 to 2016) and Max Beesley (Homeland, 2011 to 2020).
1. A hijacking in real time
Planes and airports are the perfect canvas for drama.
There is the stress of rushing for a flight; the anxious, annoyed and annoying travellers jammed together like sardines; and the glimpses of all their life stories.
The series captures this beautifully as it follows the passengers and crew of a fateful flight from Dubai to London, including first-class passenger Sam Nelson (Elba).
Soon after takeoff, a group of hijackers takes over the plane, but who they are and what they want are a mystery.
The seven-hour flight is spaced out over seven episodes, which creates the illusion of a hijacking playing out in real time and helps ratchet up tensions nicely.
2. A man with a particular set of skills
A few passengers plan a half-baked mutiny against the hijackers, but it is Sam who takes the lead.
And refreshingly, he does not have a police or military background. Instead, his particular set of skills lies in high-stakes business negotiation, and he uses that to nudge the hijackers into concessions.
This is the sort of juicy lead role an actor can really sink his teeth into, and fans of Elba will lap it up.
But the thriller does not do much with the character and the British star – who brought such gravitas to the crime dramas The Wire (2002 to 2008) and Luther (2010 to 2019) – turns in a curiously inert performance.
3. Idiot-proof story
As hijacking dramas go, there is nothing especially original here.
None of the acting or writing is anything to shout about, and the series spends too much time on certain supporting characters and side plots.
But it is actually pretty hard to mess up a classic hijacking, strangers-on-a-plane tale, which has so much intrinsic forward momentum that it is easy to binge a show such as this.
