'The Sister' — Everything you need to know about the new Hulu thriller

Russell Tovey and the cast of 'The Sister.'
(Image credit: Hulu)

This dark British drama is a story of murder, forbidden secrets, and ghosts. This isn't just your usual run-of-the-mill thriller, because there is also a supernatural theme running throughout, making it all the more chilling. This spooky drama, adapted from the novel 'Burial' by author Neil Cross who also brought us Luther, was originally given the working title 'Because the Night' and amazingly, was inspired by a harrowing nightmare. During a press conference in the UK last year, Cross told the media that the idea for his book, which then was adapted to The Sister, came one night after a particularly bad dream that saw him murder someone in a forest, but it was so vivid that, when he woke, it took time to work out of it actually happened or not.

Series creator Cross said last year: 

"I want to say, even now, I hope I dreamt it! I was very young. I was 16 or 17 and was out of my head on cider in Bristol. I was making my way back to my sister's house and there was a shortcut through the woods. I just woke up the next morning with a very, very clear memory of coming across a homeless man asleep on some steps who I randomly stabbed to death. I lived in degrees of fear for the next week. There was no blood on me, but I was still looking out of the window for the police. I was scanning the news. I was absolutely certain that I remembered randomly killing this man. Then the internet was invented and one of the first things I did was search old newspapers, so that was the inspiration for this story."

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When will 'The Sister' premier on Hulu? 

The Sister will run for four episodes, all of which will be available to stream on Hulu as of January 22nd 2021. 

Teasing the new series Hulu's website reveals: The four-part series is written by Neil Cross. Executive producers are Euston Films managing Director Kate Harwood, alongside Executive Producer for Euston Films, Noemi Spanos, and Neil Cross. The series is directed by Niall McaCormick and produced by Johnathan Curling. The Sister is a Euston Films production for ITV and is distributed internationally by Fremantle. The series was commissioned for ITV by Head of Drama, Polly Hill. 

How to watch 'The Sister' anywhere in the world 

If you're not in your usual Hulu viewing market and still want to watch The Sister, a VPN might be just the thing you need. A VPN allows your network traffic to flow through a specific set of servers in a specific country. So if you want to watch Hulu in the U.S., you can watch Hulu in the U.S.

The only catch is you need to be able to trust your VPN provider, because all of your network traffic — encrypted and unencrypted alike — will be flowing through it. For that, we've long been fans of ExpressVPN.

ExpressVPN

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And it's a great way to watch The Sister from anywhere in the world.

What drama can we expect from 'The Sister?'

Russell Tovey plays Nathan, a quietly troubled individual who is devoted to his wife while harbouring a terrible secret from his past. Despite doing everything he can to run from what happened a decade ago, a knock on the door one rainy evening sets off a shocking sequence of events that will shatter Nathan's world as he knows it. 

The mysterious figure at his door turns out to be Bob, a face from Nathan's past who he has spent the last 10 years trying to forget. Bob, who is the only other person in the world who knows the secret Nathan is hiding, delivers some horrific news to Nathan that will rake up the past and see his life unravel in ways he never thought possible. 

Russell Tovey explained the plot to Whats On TV UK: 

"At a New Year's Eve party 10 years ago, Nathan fancies this girl, but they go for a drive with Bob and something happens and the girl dies. Nathan has rebuilt himself and put Pandora in the box, but now Pandora's running around crazy and he's trying to get her back in. He's riddled with fear. It's about the unravelling of a good person who got involved in a situation he shouldn't have."

As the story develops it soon becomes clear that there are more secrets to be unearthed from the night of the New Year's Eve party... and soon Nathan is fighting with everything he has got to protect his loved ones. While there are no spoilers here about how Nathan's story ends, it has been revealed that the ending for The Sister was changed between the script stage and editing. Nina Toussaint-White, who plays police officer Jacki, told Digital Spy that she didn't know about the new ending until she watched it on TV... "I remember reading the script and it wasn't until I watched it back that I reaslized they'd changed the ending." 

Who is in the cast of 'The Sister'?

While there isn't a huge cast for The Sister, each of the characters plays an all-important role in taking this dark thriller on a rollercoaster ride from the first moment Bob knocks on Nathan's door, to the moment the credits roll on the last episode. 

The main cast for The Sister is... 

  • Russell Tovey as Nathan Redman 
  • Bertie Carvel as Bob Morrow 
  • Amrita Acharia as Holly Fox 
  • Nina Toussaint-White as Jacki Hadley 
  • Paul Bazely as Graham Fox
  • Amanda Root as June Fox 

Will there be a second season of 'The Sister'? 

While we're keeping the ending of the final episode tightly under our hats, we can reveal that there is definitely scope for this dark story to continue. Nina Toussaint-White told Digital Spy last year: "The show is based on a book, and there isn't a second book, but I think there is very much room for a sequel." Watch this space! 

Claire Crick
Assistant Managing Editor at What To Watch

Claire is Assistant Managing Editor at What To Watch and has been a journalist for over 15 years, writing about everything from soaps and TV to beauty, entertainment, and even the Royal Family. After starting her career at a soap magazine, she ended up staying for 13 years, and over that time she’s pulled pints in the Rovers Return, sung karaoke in the Emmerdale village hall, taken a stroll around Albert Square, and visited Summer Bay Surf Club in sunny Australia. 


After learning some tricks of the trade at websites Digital Spy, Entertainment Daily, and Woman & Home, Claire landed a role at What’s On TV and whattowatch.com writing about all things TV and film, with a particular love for Aussie soaps, Strictly Come Dancing and Bake Off


She’s interviewed everyone from June Brown — AKA Dot Cotton — to Michelle Keegan, swapped cooking tips with baking legend Mary Berry backstage at the NTAs, and danced the night away with soap stars at countless awards bashes. There’s not a lot she doesn’t know about soaps and TV and can be very handy when a soapy question comes up in a pub quiz! 


As well as all things soap-related, Claire also loves running, spa breaks, days out with her kids, and getting lost in a good book.