Mad Men’s Jared Harris returns to AMC to lead the network’s The Terror series

AMC announced today that Mad Men‘s Jared Harris will be returning to the network to lead the new anthology drama series, The Terror. An adaption of the bestselling novel by Dan Simmons, The Terror begins production this winter in Budapest. Ten one-hour episodes will then premiere in 2017.

The Terror is set in 1847, when a Royal Naval expedition crew searching for the Northwest Passage is attacked by a mysterious predator that stalks the ships and their crew in a suspenseful and desperate game of survival.

Jared Harris will play Francis Crozier, Captain of the HMS Terror and second in command of the expedition. He is a brilliant sailor and captain, but an Irishman who has reached his glass ceiling in the British Royal Navy and has become disillusioned with its pomp and politics.

“The story of man’s battle with nature and an unknown predator makes ‘The Terror’ a gripping and imaginative series, and calls for a special kind of actor,” said Joel Stillerman, president of original programming and development for AMC and SundanceTV. “We are thrilled to expand our relationship with Jared Harris and look forward to watching him transform into the complex and fascinating character of Captain Crozier. We are also delighted to work with this versatile and talented cast and share with audiences the despair and horror inside this journey of survival, hope and recognition.”

In addition to Jared Harris, the cast of The Terror will include Ciaran Hinds (Game of Thrones, Rome) as Sir John Franklin, Paul Ready (Cuffs, Utopia) as Henry Goodsir, and Adam Nagaitis (Houdini and Doyle, Suffragette) as Cornelius Hickey. All will play integral members of the crew aboard the ships. Tobias Menzies (Outlander, Game of Thrones), who was previously announced, rounds out the casting as James Fitzjames, a member of the Royal Navy.

David Kajganich (True Story, A Bigger Splash) and Soo Hugh (The Whispers, The Killing) are serving as executive producers, writers and co-showrunners with Scott Free, Emjag Productions and Entertainment 360 producing the series in association with AMC Studios.

(Photo Credit: WENN.com)