The Head
Genre
Created by
  • David Pastor
  • Àlex Pastor
  • David Troncoso
Directed byJorge Dorado
Country of origin
  • Spain
  • Japan
Original languages
  • English
  • Danish
  • Swedish
No. of episodes12
Production
Executive producers
  • Ran Tellem
  • Mariano Baselga
  • Laura Fernández Espeso
  • Javier Mendez
  • Bernat Elias
Production locations
Running time50+ minutes
Production companyThe Mediapro Studio
Original release
NetworkHBO Asia
Release12 June 2020 (2020-06-12) –
22 December 2022 (2022-12-22)

The Head is an English-language Spanish-Japanese psychological thriller television series directed by Jorge Dorado for HBO Asia and Hulu Japan. The first season, set in Antarctica, premiered on 12 June 2020. A second season premiered on 22 December 2022.

Premise

Winter has fallen on the South Pole. The sun will soon disappear for the next six months. A small team, known as the Winterers, will remain at the Polaris VI Antarctic Research Station to continue their innovative research, a crucial part in the fight against climate change, under the command of renowned biologist Arthur Wilde (John Lynch). But when spring comes, summer commander Johan Berg (Alexandre Willaume) returns to the station only to find the entire team are either dead or missing. A killer is on the loose, and Annika (Laura Bach), Johan's wife, is missing. If he wants to find her alive, he will have to trust Maggie (Katharine O'Donnelly), the young doctor who is profoundly shaken and apparently the sole survivor from the group.

Cast and characters

Main

  • John Lynch as Dr. Arthur Wilde, a famous biologist. 8 years prior to the events of the series, he and Annika discovered a bacterium that feeds on CO2. On Polaris VI, he continues the research in order to fight climate change. He is a domineering and manipulative character. Although he does not lead the research station, as head scientist he does have some authority over the staff. At first classified as missing, he is another survivor.
  • Katharine O'Donnelly as Dr. Maggie Mitchell, the station doctor during winter. She is new to Polaris VI with Aki and Heather, and becomes close to Aki. Upon their return, the summer team finds her hiding and afraid as one survivor next to two missing and seven dead team members. She tries to reconstruct the past events while being worn-out physically and mentally. The story she tells leads Johan's search for his wife.[1]
  • Alexandre Willaume as Johan Berg (season 1), the station's summer commander. His wife Annika remains in the station during winter and is missing when Johan returns after six months, having lost communications for three weeks. He tries to figure out what happened and find his wife.
  • Richard Sammel as Erik Osterland (season 1), the winter commander of Polaris VI. He has a military background and tries hard to keep the team safe and together. He has a relationship with Ebba, the station's nurse.[1]
  • Tomohisa Yamashita as Aki Kobayashi (main, season 1; guest, season 2), a young, ambitious biologist who works on his PhD. He admires Arthur Wilde and his work and is proud to work for him. Like Maggie and Heather, he is new at the station. Aki and Maggie are very close, and he's protective of her, even more so when the killings begin.[1]
  • Laura Bach as Annika Lundqvist (season 1), an ambitious and very dedicated biologist who discovered the bacterium together with Arthur. She remained at Polaris VI because she is determined to work on this crucial research and be acknowledged as well in a world very dominated by men. Upon Johan's return, Annika is missing, and he tries hard to find her.
  • Álvaro Morte as Ramón Lazaro (season 1), the station cook who has repeatedly returned to the station for many years now. He gets along with the crew, but can also become choleric and aggressive.
  • Olivia Morris as Rachel Russo (season 2)
  • Moe Dunford as Alec Kurtz (season 2)
  • Josefin Neldén as Amy (season 2)
  • Hovik Keuchkerian as Charlie (season 2)
  • Sota Fukushi as Yuto (season 2)

Supporting and recurring

  • Chris Reilly as Nils Hedlund (season 1), the station's Technician who is shown as conflicted, drinking a lot and more and more affected by Polar T3 Syndrome.
  • Tom Lawrence as Miles Porter, the communications officer and one of the longest serving staff at Polaris VI.
  • Sandra Andreis as Ebba Ullman (season 1), the station nurse who has spent many winters on Polaris VI already. She misses her kids and her family, but also has an affair with Erik, which is straining on her.[1]
  • Amelia Hoy as Heather Blake (season 1), a Computer Officer from Texas who is very athletic and competitive. She is the third newbie on the station, along with Maggie and Aki.
  • Mónica López as Astrid Casado (season 1)
  • Hannes Fohlin as Gus (season 1)
  • Andreas Rothlin as Dr. Micke Karlsson (season 1)
  • Philippe Jacq as Damian Fowles (season 1)

Production

The series was shot in a set in Tenerife, in the Canary Islands, whereas outdoor scenes were shot in Iceland.[2][3]

In October 2021, The Mediapro Studio (detached from HBO Asia and Hulu Japan) reported that they were preparing a second season set in a container ship, directed by Jorge Dorado and written by Mariano Baselga (season 1 executive producer) and Jordi Galceran, with cinematography by David Acereto, with Laura Fernández Espeso, Javier Mendez and Bernat Elias credited as executive producers.[4][5]

International broadcast

The series aired on Hulu Japan, HBO Asia, Canal+, AXN Portugal, and Amazon Video in the summer season 2020.[6]

In the United States, the series was streamed on HBO Max from 4 February 2021, as a "Max Original".[7][8]

In the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Luxembourg, streaming started on Starzplay on February 7, 2021.[9] While in Brazil, it started exclusively on streaming service Globoplay.[10]

In India, the series is streaming on Hotstar under "HBO Original" label.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "The Head: Get To Know The 11 Characters In HBO's New 6-Part Series". Hype Malaysia. June 13, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
  2. ↑ Hopewell, John; Lang, Jamie (4 June 2020). "The Mediapro Studio Unveils Banner Antarctic Thriller 'The Head'". Variety.
  3. ↑ Keller, Joel (4 February 2021). "Stream It Or Skip It: 'The Head' On HBO Max, A Mystery Thriller That Takes Place At An Antarctic Research Station". Decider.
  4. ↑ Lang, Jamie (13 October 2021). "'The Head' Season 2 in Pre-Production at The Mediapro Studio (Exclusive)". Variety.
  5. ↑ "'The Head' anuncia por sorpresa la producción de su temporada 2, con un carguero como nuevo escenario". Vertele!. eldiario.es. 13 October 2020.
  6. ↑ Brzeski, Patrick (April 23, 2020). "HBO Asia, Hulu Japan Set Action-Survival Series 'The Head'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  7. ↑ Hopewell, John (January 25, 2021). "The Mediapro Studio Sells 'The Head' to HBO Max, Unveils John Turturro, Big Talk & Guillem Morales Shows (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Acclaimed International Mystery Thriller THE HEAD to Premiere Exclusively on HBO Max in the U.S. on February 4". WarnerMedia (Press release). January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  9. ↑ Lang, Jamie (January 13, 2021). "'The Head' Lands on Starzplay in U.K., Germany – Global Bulletin". Variety. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
  10. ↑ Lang, Jamie (November 24, 2021). "Assista 'The Head' no Globoplay". Globoplay. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  11. ↑ "The Head". Disney+ Hotstar. Archived from the original on 2022-10-08. Retrieved 2022-01-06.
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