Sky has released the first trailer for Possession, a five-part limited series led by Gugu Mbatha-Raw that weaves together colonial history, inherited trauma and the supernatural across the landscapes of Bristol and Jamaica.
Formerly titled Inheritance, the series was created and written by Karla Crome and directed throughout by Storm Saulter. Mbatha-Raw stars as Claudia, an ambitious young biracial lawyer who travels to Jamaica to challenge an inheritance claim brought by local man Cudjoe East, played by Sheldon Shepherd, against Oliver Connaught, a wealthy white aristocrat portrayed by Jonny Lee Miller.
The case shifts dramatically when Claudia discovers that the disputed property, a former plantation called Hope Hill, is the same estate that has haunted her nightmares long before she ever arrived on the island. As she and Oliver dig deeper, a disturbing connection emerges between the plantation’s brutal colonial past and the injustices still shaping the present.
The ensemble cast also includes Bel Powley, Nadean Rawlins, Sean Gilder, Olunike Adeliyi, Richard Dillane, Diveen Henry, Jack Bandeira, Shantol Jackson, Jeff Crossley and Safina Simpson.
The series is based on an original story by Jefferson Bannis and produced by Snowed-In in association with Sky Studios. Executive producers include Ruth Kenley-Letts, Jenny van der Lande, Neil Blair, Crome, Saulter, Sam Hoyle, Serena Thompson, Mbatha-Raw and Miller. Roxanne Harvey serves as development producer and Kate Ogborn as series producer.
Possession will air on Sky in the UK and Ireland, with NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution handling international sales. A premiere date has not yet been announced.