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Jacob Elordi returns to his Australian heritage in the forthcoming limited series The Narrow Road to the Deep North, premiering on April 18, 2025, on Prime Video in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Derived from Richard Flanagan’s Booker Prize-winning novel, the five-part drama traces the horrific destiny of Australian POWs during World War II and the redemptive power of love amidst tragedy.
The adaptation, based on Richard Flanagan’s novel and written by Shaun Grant, is directed by Justin Kurzel and follows Lieutenant-Colonel Dorrigo Evans, portrayed by Elordi in his youth and Ciarán Hinds in later life. Dorrigo is a highly decorated war hero haunted by his time in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp and an intense romance with Amy Mulvaney, his uncle’s wife. The series flits in and out of Dorrigo’s memories, exploring survival, guilt, and complicated love.
Elordi underwent rigorous physical and emotional preparation for the role, including significant weight loss, to realistically convey the atrocities that POWs endured. Kurzel aimed to highlight the emotional bonds between the men rather than the brutality of war, and he adopted a sensitive stance in the adaptation.
The ensemble cast also features Olivia DeJonge, Simon Baker, Heather Mitchell, Show Kasamatsu, and Thomas Weatherall. The series was produced by Curio Pictures, with executive producers Jo Porter and Rachel Gardner, along with Flanagan, Grant, and Kurzel. It received primary production finance from Screen Australia, and support from the NSW Government via Screen NSW’s Made in NSW and PDV Funds.
The Narrow Road to the Deep North premiered globally to critical acclaim at the Berlin International Film Festival. The series has been sold outside of Australia to the BBC for broadcast on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the United Kingdom, Sky for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, Max for Central and Eastern Europe, and NBCUniversal’s Universal+ for Latin America.
This gripping adaptation is a profound exploration of the human spirit, the ravages of war, and the enduring strength of love.
