Peaky Blinders: Your essential guide to new film The Immortal Man
The wait is almost over. Adjust your flat caps, and this time fill them with popcorn – by order of the Peaky Blinders.
It’s fair to say that few TV phenomena have ever done as much work in putting the West Midlands on the map as Steven Knight’s epic post-WW1 gang drama, Peaky Blinders.
Now, four years after we said goodbye to the Shelby clan on the small screen, Tommy (Cillian Murphy) and Co. are about to hit the big time with their cinematic debut, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.
Blood will no doubt be shed, suits will surely be sharp, and the world will once again be reminded that if you’re looking for true cool and sex appeal – the West Mids is the place to be.
In honour of The Immortal Man hitting the big screen from March 6, here we're bringing you all you need to know about the long-awaited return of The Garrison’s finest.
Get yourself a decent haircut, man… We’re going to the races…
What is Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man about?
“It seems like Tommy Shelby wasn’t finished with me,” Cillian Murphy told Netflix.
“It is very gratifying to be re-collaborating with Steven Knight and [director] Tom Harper on the film version of Peaky Blinders. This is one for the fans.”
Ok, we’re sold. But even so, let’s dig a bit deeper.
The Immortal Man is set in Birmingham in 1940. Amidst the chaos of WWII, Tommy Shelby is driven back from a self-imposed exile to face his most destructive reckoning yet. With the future of the family and the country at stake, Tommy must face his own demons, and choose whether to confront his legacy, or burn it to the ground.
“The country is at war, and so, of course, are our Peaky Blinders,” Steven Knight told Netflix. “It will be an explosive chapter in the Peaky Blinders story. No holds barred. Full-on Peaky Blinders at war.”
Cast – new and returning
Old Peaky favourites Murphy, Sophie Rundle (Ada Shelby), Packy Lee (Johnny Dogs) and Ned Dennehy (Charlie Strong) are back with bells on, though there are a few notable Peaky alumni conspicuous by their absence.
Paul Anderson (Arthur Shelby) was not involved in the project, and (as far as we know), Tom Hardy (Alfie Solomons) has not reprised his fan-favourite role. Sam Claflin is not slated to return as dastardly Season 5 and 6 villain and real-life fascist leader Oswald Mosley, and also absent from the cast is Harry Kirton who played the youngest Shelby brother, Finn.
The Immortal Man will however feature new and exciting Hollywood blood in the form of Tim Roth (Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs) and Rebecca Ferguson (Dune, The Greatest Showman). Yet the most exciting addition to the cast is Barry Keoghan (Saltburn, The Banshees of Inisherin), who it has been revealed after months of speculation is playing Tommy’s illegitimate gypsy son, Duke.
Fan-favourite Season 6 guest star Stephen Graham will also be returning to the role of Hayden Stagg.
The Duke of the Saxon Shore, a fascist schemer and a mysterious medium…
Introduced at the back end of Season 6, Tommy’s son Erasmus ‘Duke of the Saxon Shore’ Shelby was originally played by young English actor Conrad Khan. With Barry Keoghan stepping into the role for The Immortal Man, Duke is set to play a major role in the film’s story, with his antics as the new ‘head pack dog’ of The Peaky Blinders reportedly being the cause of his father Tommy’s exit from retirement.
With Murphy and Keoghan having previously worked together on Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, and being well-renowned pals, we’re expecting some particularly sizzling chemistry here, particularly with their characters initially at loggerheads.
Reportedly, when we first encounter Duke in The Immortal Man he is so chillingly relentless that he is considering helping Germany to win the war – negotiating terms with Tim Roth’s sinister Beckett.
Seemingly taking up the mantle of one of the film’s prime antagonists, Reservoir Dogs alumnus Roth is no stranger to the violence that comes with the Peaky Blinders package, and it would be churlish to expect that his character won’t be getting his hands dirty.
A British Fascist sympathiser, Beckett looks set to be filling the shoes left vacant by Sam Claflin’s hideous Moseley.
“Fascism comes at you in many disguises, as we know,” Roth said to Netflix. “He’s very reasonable. Which I thought would make him a more terrifying prospect.”
Less terrifying, though certainly more enigmatic, is Rebecca Ferguson’s Kaulo. Reportedly, the character’s essence is essentially that of a mysterious gypsy psychic, though little more has been given away.
Ferguson’s powerful screen presence cannot be overstated however, with her roles in Dune, The Greatest Showman and many other projects showcasing her effortless magnetism.
Will she help fill the void left behind by the late Helen McCrory (Aunt Poll)? Who knows – these are still some very big shoes to fill. But, with leading man Murphy having personally recruited her, we should all be very excited about what she will be bringing to the party.
And what a party it is surely going to be…
How to watch, where and when
Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man hits select cinemas from March 6, and lands on Netflix on March 20. Local cinemas showing the film include Lockworks Cinema, Wolverhampton and Wellington Orbit, Wellington, Telford.
