David Tennant, star of both the acclaimed UK drama series Broadchurch
and its American remake Gracepoint, has talked to USA Today about making the
adaptation for US TV. Both series explore the impact of the murder of a young
boy on a seaside community, but there are differences promised, including a new
ending. David spoke about the characters he played – Broadchurch’s Alec Hardy
and his Gracepoint counterpart Emmett Carver – and how they are both similar and
different.
"Many of their circumstances are similar. They look
quite similar, obviously. I have a scruffy beard in both”, he said. "But
they come from different places, have different backgrounds and the
circumstances of their lives are different, as becomes apparent as the series
goes on.[Carver] feels different, which may have something to do with the
alchemy of working with different people, having a different accent and slight
differences of story beats,"
Emmett Carver also has had a name change from the original
series’ Alec Hardy, part of the process of transferring a story set on the
south-western coast of the UK to the northern Californian seaboard. Alec Hardy,
it was felt, sounded too British, and along with Olly Stevens, Nige Carter and
several other characters, the names were given a more American feel.
Broadchurch was previously aired in America, but only on subscription
channel BBC America, and less than 1% of the population watched it. This was the
main reason to bring the story to a wider American audience. David says he was
keen to be part of the American adaptation, citing series creator Chris
Chibnall’s original story as a major attractor.
"You know it's a
good script. You know it's an interesting character, so it's sort of a
no-brainer to be involved in retelling a story that works and has been a bit of
a phenomenon back home," he says.
Gracepoint premieres tonight on FOX TV in the USA and on Global in Canada at 9pm/8c
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