Edward Bluemel, known for his roles in “My Lady Jane” and “Castlevania: Nocturne,” has been cast as the iconic Belgian detective Hercule Poirot in a new television adaptation of Agatha Christie’s mystery novels, the BBC announced Tuesday.
The six-part series will air on the BBC in the United Kingdom and stream on BritBox in North America. No other casting has been announced yet.
“The series is an intimate study of Hercule the man and an epic portrait of Britain between the wars,” a press release said. “The series takes a magnifying glass to three of Christie’s most celebrated stories, while also charting Hercule’s burgeoning friendship with Captain Arthur Hastings, his early encounters with Scotland Yard’s James Japp, and introducing him to one particular nemesis.”
Jonny Campbell is set to direct the first two episodes. The series was written by Benji Walters.
Bluemel shared his reaction to the casting on Instagram, writing: “Truly an honour to be trusted with the boy from Belgium. I shall be preparing for the role by solving as many crimes as possible in my local area.”
The role of Poirot has been portrayed by several actors over the decades. David Suchet famously played the detective in the long-running PBS Masterpiece series “Poirot,” while Kenneth Branagh has portrayed him in multiple feature films. The new adaptation marks a return to a serialized television format for Christie’s most famous character.