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Slow Horses and Sherlock stars to lead 'compelling' 5-part thriller set in France


Slow Horses star Joanna Scanlan leads the cast of Missed Call, Channel 5's upcoming thriller about a mother whose daughter goes missing


woman sitting at white cloth table holding menu© Apple TV+
Nicky Morris
Nicky MorrisActing TV and Film Editor
September 23, 2025
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Channel 5 has unveiled the impressive cast of its upcoming thriller, Missed Call, led by Slow Horses star Joanna Scanlan. The five-parter follows a single mother, whose life is upended when her teenage daughter disappears while on a school exchange in France. The series, which also stars the likes of Sherlock's Rupert Graves and BAFTA-winner Robert Lindsay, is described as a "tense and emotional" thriller which tells a "compelling story of maternal determination and cultural clash". 

Joanna Scanlan has starred in a number of gripping dramas over the years, from Boat Story and The Accident to Slow Horses. The BAFTA-winning actress clearly knows a good script when she sees one, and I cannot wait to see her star in Missed Call, which sounds like a gripping story that will keep viewers glued to their screens. Keep reading for all we know about the show so far. 

Joanna Scanlan has joined Slow Horses for season 4© Jack English
Slow Horses star Joanna Scanlan stars in the Channel 5 series

What is Missed Call about? 

The upcoming thriller is set against the idyllic backdrop of a French village and follows single mother Sarah, whose world is turned upside down after receiving a late-night missed call from her teenage daughter, Katie, while she's on a school exchange. The synopsis continues: "When Sarah arrives in France, she finds the host family and local authorities disturbingly indifferent to Katie's disappearance. As Sarah refuses to accept their complacency, her search for her daughter spirals into a gripping and dangerous race against time."

Robert Lindsay is set to star in Sherwood season 2
Robert Lindsay [pictured above in Sherwood] has also been cast in the show

Lead star Joanna said she was "gripped from the first page" of the script and described the series as a "powerful story about every mother's worst fear, set in a place that's stunningly beautiful but weirdly unsettling". The actress said in a statement: "Sarah is a complex, vibrant and determined woman, and I’m hugely excited to bring her to life in this tense and emotional thriller. It's a real pleasure to be working with Channel 5 on such a bold and compelling piece of drama."

Meanwhile, Paul Testar, Commissioning Editor for 5, described the series as an "emotionally charged thriller that brings together a phenomenal international cast and a compelling story of maternal determination and cultural clash."

joanna scanlan© Photo: Getty Images
Joanna leads the show, which follows a single mum whose daughter disappears on a student exchange trip

Who stars in Missed Call? 

The series, which is penned by co-creator Matthew Thomas (Marcella), as well as Sally Abbott (Vera) and Paul Matthew Thompson (Shakespeare and Hathaway), boasts a stacked cast led by Joanna Scanlan. She's joined by Claire Keim (Vise le Coeur, Menace sur Kermadec), Rupert Graves (Sherlock, The Burning Girls), François-Xavier Demaison (Disparue, Le Négociateur) and Robert Lindsay (Sherwood, Generation Z). 

A release date has yet to be announced.

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