Move aside, Ted Lasso! The Oscar-nominated Jude Law (Return to Cold Mountain, The Talented Mr. Ripley) will return to TV to star in a new series set in the world of football, a project led by the creator of Adolescence and The Lord of the Flies Jack Thorne. He will portray Bill Shankly, the legendary manager of Liverpool Football Club, the English football club based in Liverpool.
Jude Law in the role of Bill Shankly: first details
The series will recount the rise of Bill Shankly, the man who steered the club to promotion to the First Division and then guided it to three league titles, two FA Cups, four Community Shields and a UEFA Cup. Set against the backdrop of the vibrant 1960s Liverpool, a period of great musical and cultural upheaval, the drama will explore a pivotal era in the club’s history, tracing its transformation from a squad in trouble into a global powerhouse—today backed by more than 400 million supporters around the world—and cementing its status as one of sport’s most storied institutions.
Tom Werner, a producer known for his work behind cult series such as Pappa e ciccia and I Robinson, has served as president of Liverpool FC since 2010. In an interview with Deadline he said the series could evolve into something akin to The Crown: “It’s a story about family and relationships, viewed through the lens of a football club. Bill Shankly understood that it wasn’t just about finding the best talent for the team. It was about forging a deep bond with the supporters. The reason Liverpool is so special to me—beyond the fact that you could say it counts a billion supporters worldwide—is that the relationship between the club and its fans is truly unique. If we manage to tell all of this in a series, starting with Bill Shankly and tracing the club’s journey, we could also touch on aspects like the bond with the Beatles.”
Shankly died in 1981, at the age of 68, seven years after leaving the post. His granddaughter Karen Gill, author of The Real Bill Shankly, is involved in the project, which will be shot in Liverpool and at Anfield, the club’s historic home. For Law, a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, this will be his sixth lead role in a television production after The Young Pope and The New Pope, The Third Day, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and Black Rabbit.
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