The Airport Chaplain Netflix deal sends Hugo Weaving drama worldwide
Netflix has taken global rights outside Australia to The Airport Chaplain, the SBS drama starring Hugo Weaving and Shabana Azeez.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
3 min read
The Airport Chaplain is heading to Netflix, with the streamer taking worldwide rights outside Australia to the new SBS drama led by Hugo Weaving and Shabana Azeez, Deadline reported.
The eight-part Australian series will launch on Netflix on August 26, the same day it arrives on commissioning broadcaster SBS and its streaming service SBS On Demand in Australia, according to Deadline.
The show comes from Sydney production company Wooden Horse and stars Weaving, known for Slow Horses, as Tobias Wallace, an airport terminal chaplain with a habit of pushing boundaries to help people. Azeez, a breakout from The Pitt, plays Mira, his new boss and the terminal manager who sees him as a risk the airport may no longer need.
What is The Airport Chaplain about?
The Airport Chaplain follows Tobias Wallace as he supports passengers and workers inside a busy international airport. The story puts him in the middle of travel chaos, workplace pressure, security problems, family separations and bereavement, while Mira is forced to reconsider whether his messy, compassionate approach has a place in the terminal.
The premise has a real-life spark. Deadline reported that the series was inspired by Wooden Horse co-founder Jude Troy’s chance meeting with a Melbourne Airport chaplain who helped her find a lost handbag.
Deadline said the series was first presented at Series Mania last year. It is also due to have its world premiere next month at the Melbourne International Film Festival, and work on a second season is already underway.
Who is in the cast?
Alongside Weaving and Azeez, the ensemble includes Claudia Karvan, Thomas Weatherall, Erroll Shand, Kavitha Anandasivam, Jackson Tozer, Elias Anton, Arka Das, Fanny Hanusin, Echo Palo, Nicholas Denton, George Mason, Brenna Harding, Michael Logo, Priscilla Doueihy, Claude Jabbour and Ras-Samuel Welda’abzgi, according to Deadline.
Troy said in comments reported by Deadline that Wooden Horse was founded with the aim of taking high-end scripted Australian stories to international viewers, and described the Netflix deal as a way to bring the series to more than 190 countries and regions.
Weaving also told Deadline the drama deals with love, loss, grief and joy in the charged setting of an international airport. He said he was drawn to Tobias Wallace as a flawed but humane character affected by the emotional lives of the people who come to him for guidance.
Who made The Airport Chaplain?
Screenwriter Elise McCredie created the series and serves as an executive producer with Troy, Wooden Horse co-founder Richard Finlayson, co-producer Alex Cameron and SBS’ Nakul Legha.
Bonnie Moir and Tig Terera directed the series. The writing team includes McCredie, Sarah Bassiuoni, Mithila Gupta and Vidya Rajan.
Wooden Horse produced The Airport Chaplain for SBS. Deadline reported that Screen Australia provided major production investment, with additional support from VicScreen. UK distributor DCD will handle second-window sales.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.