Few literary masterpieces are as well-known as Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist, published in 1838. The literary work has captivated readers for many generations, and now Disney+ is giving one of the story’s most infamous pickpockets a unique makeover. The Artful Dodger, a streaming service’s Australian original series, has unveiled its first photos and made its Nov. 29 premiere date known.
Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Game of Thrones, The Queen’s Gambit) and David Thewlis of Fargo will star in the next series. In the 1850s Australian setting, Brodie-Sangster portrays Jack Dawkins, also known as The Artful Dodger.
Dawkins formerly served as the leader of a squad of teenage thieves, and his speciality was pickpocketing on the streets of London with his deft fingers. After many years have passed and Dawkins is now an adult living in Australia, he has changed his once-thieving fingers into those of a very adept surgeon. Though his “past returns to haunt him with the arrival of Fagin,” the man who had trained him when he was younger, the Dodger’s attempt at rehabilitation is hindered.
The Artful Dodger’s storyline, cast, and crew
The Artful Dodger is a story about finding redemption against the temptation of one’s past pleasures. According to the show’s synopsis, the eight-part series is “a tale of reinvention, betrayal, redemption, and love with a twist” and has “heists, life-and-death surgeries, and the harsh realities of the criminal world mingling with the middle ground and gentry.” James McNamara, David Maher, and David Taylor are the show’s creators. Along with Corrie Chen and Gracie Otto, Jeffrey Walker also produces and directs the eight-part inaugural season. Tim Minchin, Miranda Tapsell, and Damon Herriman are joining the main cast.