AMC Taps Caviezel And McKellen For The Prisoner

AMC announced today that acclaimed film actors Jim Caviezel and Ian McKellen have signed on to star in the network’s reinterpretation of the 1960’s classic, The Prisoner. AMC is co-producing the six-part mini-series with ITV Productions and Granada International, with a worldwide premiere slated for 2009. Caviezel will play the title role of Number Six, a part that was originally made famous by Patrick McGoohan. Ian McKellen will co-star playing the role of Number Two.

While the original series, which debuted in 1967, was a riff on Cold War politics, AMC’s reinterpretation will reflect 21st Century concerns and anxieties, such as liberty, security, and surveillance, yet also showcase the same key elements of paranoia, tense action and socio-political commentary seen in the original.