If you’ve finished season two of Sex/Life - and can’t wait for the new Rivals adaptation - then new Netflix series, Obsession, is for you.
The four-part thriller is a contemporary adaptation of Josephine Hart’s 1991 novella Damage, and tells the story of an illicit affair - with a BDSM dynamic - between the enigmatic Anna and her fiancé’s father William.
According to Netflix, ‘Obsession is a thrilling and seductive series about erotic obsession and forbidden desire. Whilst Anna fights to sustain both relationships, William is drawn into an obsessive spiral. But how long can they keep their secret hidden before someone gets hurt?’
Here’s everything you need to know about the show.
Who’s in the Obsession cast?
Happy Valley’s Charlie Murphy (who played Ann Gallagher) stars as Anna Barton - a complicated young woman with a difficult past. ‘On the one hand, she’s desperately looking for normality to anchor and heal her,’ says Charlie. ’But the destructive side seeks out danger and annihilation’
Richard Armitage plays celebrate surgeon William Farrow who detonates his seemingly perfect life by embarking on a affair with Anna - his son’s fiancé. ‘I was fascinated by the psychology of what leads a very successful man, with a really good marriage, a great family and, really, nothing wrong in his life, to risk everything,’ says Richard. ‘Was there a point when he could have stepped away, not crossed the line? Or was the attraction so compelling it was out of his hands?
Indira Varma (This Way Up, Game of Thrones) plays William’s wife Ingrid, with Rish Shah as Anna’s fiancé Jay.
Obsession trailer
What happens in Obsession?
Hart’s novel has been adapted for the screen before - the 1992 film Damage starring Juliet Binoche and Jeremy Irons as the two leads. But this adaptation is quite different.
While the original book and film were told through the voice of a male protagonist, this version, written by a woman, co-directed by one and with a female intimacy coordinator on board, gives equal weight to the female perspective.
Feminist playwright Morgan Lloyd Malcolm - who has adapted the plot for this versions - has shaken things up. 'I loved the book, which is an amazing page-turning, erotic thriller, but it was written entirely from a man’s point of view. Anna, his lover, is portrayed as a kind of vamp who comes into the family, blows everything up and then disappears. Her primary function is to serve the purpose of what the male lead needs.
'I said, "If I’m going to do this, I want to make sure I dig into Anna and why she behaves in the way she does." I wanted to try and understand the characters in the story – and especially Anna - in a way that wasn’t just two-dimensional.'
The result is an edge-of-your-seat thriller that sheds light on hot topics, from gender politics, to power and consent in adult sexual relationships.
'Anna and William are, basically, exploring a BDSM (Bondage-Dominance, Sado-Masochistic) relationship, which is all about consent and the submissive partner, in this case Anna, being the partner who’s actually in control. She’s very insistent about the rules, which is actually extremely empowering for her. The problem is that, because of William’s obsession, he starts to break them,' explains Morgan.
'The point I wanted to make is that, per se, BDSM sex is not abusive or bad. In fact, it can be done safely and brilliantly and healthily. The difficulty here is the choices that these two people are making and how the relationship becomes a runaway train that we all know will crash spectacularly.'
Obsession release date
Obsession lands exclusively on Netflix from 13 April.