From Sons of Anarchy to The Gentlemen, Charlie Hunnam has carved out an enviable career for himself as a charming screen rebel. But as the first trailer for Apple TV+’s Shantaram makes perfectly clear, there’s a whole lot of nuance to explore within the umbrella of pretend criminal. And his latest character is apparently nothing like Jax Teller.
“I thought that was very cheeky that Apple released that image as the first image,” Charlie Hunnam recently told Entertainment Weekly, referencing a trap that even we fell for (hey nobody’s perfect).
“I’m on a motorcycle in the show for approximately two minutes maximum over the course of 12 hours, so I hope people don’t get too excited thinking that this is some sort of Sons of Anarchy in India… because that’s not what we’re delivering.”
“The show is so radically different and the characters are so radically different.”
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Adapted from the critically-acclaimed semi-biographical novel written by convicted Australian bank robber, Gregory David Roberts, the upcoming drama series follows the story of a fugitive named Lin Ford (Charlie Hunnam), who escapes to an incredibly vibrant and wildly chaotic Bombay circa 1980s.
Alone in an unfamiliar city, Lin struggles to avoid the very trouble he’s been running from in his newfound environment. And after falling for an “enigmatic and intriguing” woman named Karla, Lin must choose between freedom or love, navigating all the complications that come with said choice, as well as search for redemption.
Hunnam added: “We only get about a third into the text this season, so it really just sets up the world and the major players and some of the conflict. If we’re lucky enough to get a second season, that is when that really will become the central story point.”
“We take Lin into the world where he gets exposed to both of those elements, but the choice between the two, the conflict between the two, doesn’t really become apparent until later.”
“I’ve never worked as hard on anything as I’ve worked on this, so I’m nervous and just really excited to see what the reaction will be.”
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Charlie Hunnam has been joined on his first full-time television gig since Sons of Anarchy concluded back in 2014 by Shubham Saraf, Elektra Kilbey, Fayssal Bazzi, Luke Pasqualino, Antonia Desplat, Alyy Khan, Sujaya Dasgupta, Vincent Perez, David Field, Alexander Siddig, Gabrielle Scharnitzky, Elham Ehsas, Rachel Kamath, Matthew Joseph, and Shiv Palekar.
Shantaram has been co-created, written, and executive produced by Steve Lightfoot, who cut his teeth with the likes of Transporter: The Series, Hannibal, and Narcos, before stepping up as the showrunner for Marvel’s The Punisher. Lightfoot will also serve as a showrunner this time around.
In the director’s chair, you’ll find Bharat Nalluri (Tsunami: The Aftermath, The 100, Spooks: The Greater Good) and Australia’s own Justin Kurzel (Macbeth, Assassin’s Creed, True History of the Kelly Gang), who also executive produces alongside Andrea Barron, Nicole Clemens, Steve Golin, plus co-creator Eric Warren Singer (American Hustle, Top Gun: Maverick).
The first three episodes of Shantaram premiere on October 14th of 2022 via Apple TV+ with the remaining instalments of its 12-episode run released weekly thereafter – check out the trailer above.
