Brendan Gleeson’s new TV show about a serial killer looks brilliant

2017 really does seem to be the year of Stephen King, doesn't it?

We've already had the latest adaptation of The Mist on the small-screen, while the big screen has taken on the likes of The Dark Tower and everyone is shaking with anticipation for IT. Our very own Brendan Gleeson is getting in on the King action, taking the lead in the new serial killer thriller series Mr. Mercedes. Gleeson plays retired police detective who finds himself being taunted by a demented serial killer (played by Fortitude's Harry Treadaway) with a series of lurid letters and emails, forcing the ex-cop to undertake a private, and potentially felonious, crusade to bring the killer to justice before he can strike again. The show is produced by the minds behind Game Of Thrones and Lost, and has been adapted by the guy who brought us one of this year's best new shows, Little Big Lies. Clip via Audience Network The show premiered this week in the States, but while there has been no word of a UK or Irish channel picking up the rights to it yet, it does look like you can already watch the first episode online here. Meanwhile, critics in the U.S. are loving the show so far, especially Gleeson's typically brilliant performance: "It's a quality star vehicle fuelled with enough poignancy to make it worth the ride." - Entertainment Weekly "Gleeson does a first-rate job with a character we’ve seen before, the tormented cop who plunges into a battle where he’s seemingly outflanked and outgunned. Treadaway is suitably troubling as a kid who represses such waves of rage and frustration that we don’t doubt it could explode somewhere." - The Huffington Post "King’s tales are generally known for capturing middle-class angst, and the series has creepily translated that to the screen." - Los Angeles Daily News "Mr. Mercedes is awfully good." - Yahoo TV