What if the story of Jekyll and Hyde were based on a real person, a true case? And what if there were someone alive in the present day that had the same horrible curse?
This is the premise of the new BBC show Jekyll (coming in August to BBC America), written by Steven Moffat—the creator of the British comedy Coupling and writer of several episodes of the new Doctor Who series (including “The Girl In the Fireplace” and “The Empty Child”)—and envisioned by Moffat and Jeffrey Taylor. The story features Doctor Tom Jackman, a man who doesn’t know who his parents were, having been found as an abandoned baby in a railway station. For the past several months, Dr. Jackman has been having black-outs during which another force inhabits his body. A darker personality that is physically younger, thinner, two inches taller, seems to lack morals or inhibitions, and has borderline superhuman strength and speed. Jackman finds out that the famous story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was based on a real person who lived and died in the 19th century, a person who looks like he could be Jackman’s twin brother. Now Jackman struggles to keep his life in control and his family safe, a family he prays his own “Mr. Hyde” will never find out about, lest he decide to attack them.
Actor James Nesbitt (Murphy’s Law, Waking Ned Devine) does a superb job of playing the two lead roles. Like Christopher Reeve with Superman and Clark Kent, Nesbitt makes sure you know which personality is in control just by hearing the voice and seeing the way he carries himself. The makeup helps too, yes, but it would be nothing without the proper actor to utilize and almost overshadow it. As Jackman, he is reminiscent of Scott Bakula’s portrayal of Dr. Sam Beckett (in the series Quantum Leap)—a man we can’t help but root for and feel for—whereas his version of Hyde is at once both charming and quite frightening. When he grins, you’re not sure if he’s just trying to scare you a bit for fun or if he’s finally decided just to kill you outright because you’re confident enough not to expect it.
What’s interesting, though, is that on several occasions, characters bring up the idea that Hyde is nothing as simple as Jackman’s “dark side.” In fact, he seems to be like a child. He has a man’s physical desires to drive his actions but no memories or experience of an upbringing to fall back on or derive morals from. Since he doesn’t share Jackman’s memories and only started manifesting months before the show takes place, he never had a childhood to shape his persona, so the question comes up as to how responsible one can really hold him for his actions.
By placing the series in the modern day, rather than just retelling a period piece, Steven Moffat has made it more personal and interesting to the viewers. Whereas the original Jekyll had no way of really tracking or controlling his dark side, Tom Jackman and Hyde use GPS trackers and tape recorders to monitor each other’s movements and communicate. They even arrange scheduled times when Hyde is allowed to roam free and indulge himself, provided he doesn’t break the “rules” both have agreed on. It’s an uneasy truce as Hyde begins to feel more and more that he deserves more control.
To set this apart from other adaptations of the famous body-sharing duo, the series introduces a conspiracy behind the works. Very quickly, we realize that both Jackman and Hyde are being followed by a very rich and very powerful organization, one that not only wants to use Hyde for their own purposes, but also may hold the answers to what is the truth behind his condition and where Tom Jackman really came from.
Another interesting thing about the show is the way they approach the transformation; it differs from certain movies of the past. In retelling the story, filmmakers have often tried to go for extreme transformations involving heavy makeup or masks. In this new series, subtlety is key. Hyde and Jackman don’t look drastically different. In fact, they look like they could be twin brothers. To distinguish the two, the makeup team gives James Nesbitt a carefully designed wig so that Hyde appears to have thicker, darker hair and a noticeably lower hairline (thus also making him look younger). Tiny prosthetics are applied to the chin and earlobes to give a slightly different facial structure. The final touch is that James Nesbitt wears black contact lenses to play Hyde, making the dark persona appear more “soulless.”
Nesbitt is joined by a cast of very talented actors, including Denis Lawson (Masterpiece Theatre: Bleak House) as Peter Syme, Michelle Ryan (East Enders) as Katherine Reimer, Gina Bellman (Coupling) as Claire Jackman, and Paterson Joseph (Neverwhere) as the wheeling and dealing villain Benjamin.
Jekyll is a six-episode mini-series that should be watched by all who enjoy a truly psychological thriller. You’ll come to enjoy Hyde’s truly frightening behavior and his dark charm as much as you connect and sympathize with Dr. Jackman’s raw humanity, his fear that those he trusts are working against him, and his desperate struggle to make sure that the people he loves remain protected. Moffat’s storytelling and Nesbitt’s intensity both make this a must-see.
I now end this with two quotes from the show that won’t really give anything away about the episodes or plotlines.
TOM JACKMAN: “He has Disney favorites?”
KATHERINE: “He likes the songs.”
TOM JACKMAN: “My dark side likes Mary Poppins. No wonder I was bullied at school.”
HYDE: “Ever killed anyone, Benjamin?… You’re missing out. It’s like sex. Only there’s a winner.”

© 2007 by Alan Kistler

[Editor’s note: this mini-series originally aired on BBC One from 16 June to 28 July 2007. It debuts on BBC America at 8PM on 4 August 2007, and will run on a shorter schedule than weekly. The full schedule is available on this page.]