The Outlaws | |
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Genre | Dark comedy Crime drama Thriller |
Created by | Elgin James Stephen Merchant |
Starring |
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Music by | Dan Jones Stew Jackson |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
No. of series | 3 |
No. of episodes | 17 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producer | Nickie Sault |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network | Amazon Prime Video BBC One |
Release | 25 October 2021 – present |
The Outlaws is a British crime thriller comedy television series created by Elgin James and Stephen Merchant, and directed by Merchant and John Butler. It is shown on BBC One and iPlayer in the UK and Amazon Prime Video in the United States and some other international territories.
Filming of the first season was halted in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In January 2021, it was confirmed that a second series had been ordered, with production for the first series resuming in February 2021. It was later confirmed that both series had been filmed back to back. The first series premiered on 25 October 2021, and the second series premiered on 5 June 2022. The programme was renewed for a third series in March 2023, and premiered on 30 May 2024.
The story follows seven strangers from different walks of life who are forced together to complete a Community Payback sentence, set in Bristol. [1] However, their luck changes – not necessarily for the better – when they discover a bag full of money, unaware that its true owners are dangerous drug dealers and criminals.
No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | U.K. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "Episode 1" | Stephen Merchant | Stephen Merchant and Elgin James | 25 October 2021 | 3.11 |
2 | 2 | "Episode 2" | Stephen Merchant | Stephen Merchant and Emma Jane Unsworth | 1 November 2021 | 4.22 |
3 | 3 | "Episode 3" | John Butler | Stephen Merchant and Nikita Lalwani | 8 November 2021 | 3.43 |
4 | 4 | "Episode 4" | John Butler | John Butler | 15 November 2021 | 3.23 |
5 | 5 | "Episode 5" | John Butler | Stephen Merchant | 22 November 2021 | 3.23 |
6 | 6 | "Episode 6" | Stephen Merchant | Stephen Merchant | 29 November 2021 | 3.50 |
No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | U.K. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
7 | 1 | "Episode 1" | John Butler | Stephen Merchant | 5 June 2022 | 2.96 |
8 | 2 | "Episode 2" | John Butler | Nathaniel Price | 12 June 2022 | 2.63 |
9 | 3 | "Episode 3" | Alicia MacDonald | Stephen Merchant and Nikita Lalwani | 19 June 2022 | 2.35 |
10 | 4 | "Episode 4" | Alicia MacDonald | Claire Downes | 26 June 2022 | 2.29 |
11 | 5 | "Episode 5" | Alicia MacDonald | John Butler | 3 July 2022 | 2.13 |
12 | 6 | "Episode 6" | Alicia MacDonald | Stephen Merchant | 10 July 2022 | 2.33 |
No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
13 | 1 | "Episode 1" | John Butler | John Butler | 30 May 2024 |
14 | 2 | "Episode 2" | John Butler | Nathaniel Price | 30 May 2024 |
15 | 3 | "Episode 3" | Curtis Vowell | Nikita Lalwani & Jess Bray | 30 May 2024 |
16 | 4 | "Episode 4" | Curtis Vowell | Nathaniel Price | 30 May 2024 |
17 | 5 | "Episode 5" | Curtis Vowell | Stephen Merchant & Jessica Gunning | 30 May 2024 |
The series is a co-production between BBC One and Amazon Studios. The series was commissioned by BBC Comedy and BBC One, and produced by Big Talk with Stephen Merchant's Four Eyes. The series is created by Merchant and Elgin James. Executive producers are Merchant for Four Eyes; and Luke Alkin, Kenton Allen, and Matthew Justice for Big Talk. Kate Daughton is the Commissioning Editor for the BBC, with the directors for the first series being Merchant and John Butler, and the producer is Nickie Sault. Originally announced with the working title The Offenders, the series was renamed during production, with the new title confirmed in September 2021. [2] In January 2021, it was confirmed that a second series had been ordered. A third series was confirmed to be in production by the BBC in March 2023. [3]
After some delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, filming on location in Bristol began in February 2021, as well as at The Bottle Yard Studios in Whitchurch. [4] The first and second series were filmed back-to-back. [5] [6] A small piece of Banksy's art was used on set. [7]
In May 2023, production crew and cast were seen filming in the Bristol Harbour area, and in Clifton, Bristol, [8] as well as the seafront at Weston-super-Mare for filming for the third series. [9] Actress Eleanor Tomlinson confirmed in an interview on The One Show in November 2023 that filming on the third series had been completed.
The series premiered on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK on 25 October 2021; it was later released on Amazon Prime Video in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Nordic countries. [10] The second series was released in full on BBC iPlayer on 5 June 2022. [11] The third series was made available from 30 May 2024 on BBC iPlayer, and on 31 May 2024 on Amazon Prime Video. [12] [13]
On 9 January 2023, the show received a nomination at the Comedy.co.uk Awards 2022 in the Best Comedy Drama Series category. [14] On 23 January 2023, Stephen Merchant received a nomination in the Outstanding Comedy Actor category at the National Comedy Awards 2023. [15] The soundtrack composed by Stew Jackson and Dan Jones was nominated for the Best Television Soundtrack Ivor Novello Award. [16]
In season one's sixth episode, Frank, while cleaning a graffiti-covered wall as part of his Community Payback sentence, paints over an image of a stencilled rat sitting on two spray cans signed by Banksy. The BBC have confirmed that the artwork was an original piece created by Banksy for The Outlaws, and that it was genuinely destroyed by Walken when he painted over it. [17]
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