Slated to premiere on May 31, 2022, FX/Hulu's new musical miniseries Pistol chronicles the triumphant rise and tragic fall of the British punk rock scene during the 1970s. Adapted from the memoir by Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones, the six-part miniseries directed by Danny Boyle features a tremendous cast of international actors, many of which are bound to be recognized for some of the most popular and acclaimed movies and TV shows in recent memory.
Whether it's Oscar-winning prestige films, memorable Netflix series, beloved video game adaptations, or must-see underrated indies, the stellar cast of Pistol has been working across the multimedia landscape.
Toby Wallace - Babyteeth
Australian actor Toby Wallace is poised to play Steve Jones in Pistol, the Sex Pistols guitarist whose testimony serves as the basis of the biographical drama. While some may have seen Wallace in the Netflix sci-fi mystery series The Society, chances are most people recognize the talented actor from his starring turn in the acclaimed 2019 coming-of-age film Babyteeth.
Directed by Shannon Murphy, Babyteeth follows Milla (Eliza Scanlen), a terminally-ill teenager who falls in love with an older drug dealer named Moses (Wallace) and finds solace in his company despite his criminal activity and convinces her parents to accept him.
Maisie Williams - Game Of Thrones
The most recognizable star of Pistol is almost certainly Maisie Williams, the top-billed English actress who is set to play Jordan Mooney aka Pamela Rooke in the miniseries, the daring model and performance artist who often partook in Sex Pistol live performances.
While some will recall seeing Williams in New Mutants or the miniseries Two Weeks to Live, Williams' most substantial role to date came as the heroic and villainous Arya Stark in roughly 60 episodes of HBO's hit action-adventure fantasy Game of Thrones. The sprawling epic concerns the warring factions among nine noble families fighting to control Westeros, and Williams showed notable diversity in her acting as Arya matured and changed.
Ferdia Walsh-Peelo - CODA
In Pistol, Irish actor and musician Ferdia Walsh-Peelo will portray Nick Kent, a British music critic who played guitar for an early iteration of the Sex Pistols. Many will recognize Walsh-Peelo as King Alfred from the TV series Vikings, although his more recent role in the Best Picture-winning CODA really stands out.
Standing for Children Of Deaf Adults, CODA tracks Ruby Rossi (Emilia Jones), the only hearing person in her family who is torn between pursuing her musical dream or saving her parents' business. Walsh-Peelo gives a tender turn as Miles, Ruby's love interest that helps her decide what is most important.
Dylan Llewellyn - Hollyoaks
English actor Dylan Llewellyn is set to depict Wally Nightingale in Pistol, the guitarist who founded the band that would later become Sex Pistols. With a balanced resume of film and TV credits, Llewellyn's biggest role to date came via the young-adult British soap opera Hollyoaks.
Essentially the British version of Degrassi High, Llewellyn played the role of Martin "Jono" Johnson for nearly 100 episodes of Hollyoaks, giving him a ton of freedom to workshop his acting chops, hone his craft, and prepare to land a role like Nightingale for a world-class director like Danny Boyle.
Louis Partridge - Enola Holmes
Londoner Louis Partridge will play the Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious in the new FX/Hulu miniseries, an iconoclastic punk rock legend who continues to be celebrated. The role will mark quite a departure for Partridge, who fans will no doubt recall seeing in the Netflix original movie Enola Holmes, a delightful period drama that is quite similar to Bridgerton.
Enola Holmes stars Millie Bobby Brown as the titular sleuthing teenage sister of Sherlock Holmes, who proves her investigative prowess by solving a grand conspiracy involving Lord Tewkesbury (Partridge), a dashing yet mysterious young man with a sordid past. The movie was such a hit for Netflix that Partridge has already reprised his role in Enola Holmes 2, which is currently in post-production.
Emma Appleton - The Witcher
In Pistol, English actress Emma Appleton will portray Nancy Spungen, the American girlfriend of Sid Vicious who became known for her wild ways during the '70s punk scene. With more TV credits than films under her belt, the most visible project Appleton has done to date is playing Princess Renfri Vellga in Netflix's popular fantasy TV show The Witcher.
Adapted from the popular book series that follows Geralt, a monster hunter in the ancient land of Rivia who is hired to travel from village to village and slay beasts, The Witcher season 3 is currently in production. However, given her fate at the hands of Geralt, Princess Renfri is not likely to return.
Anson Boon - 1917
English actor Anson Boon landed a plum role on Pistol as Johnny Rotten, the notorious Sex Pistols frontman who has become an undisputed punk rock icon. While Boon played Young Moritz on the Netflix series The Defeated, chances are most people recognize his face from the acclaimed WWI drama 1917.
Directed by Sam Mendes and photographed by Roger Deakins, 1917 is designed to appear as one long, unbroken shot to recreate the visceral immersion of trench warfare that was so prominent in WWI. Boon played the minor role of Private Cooke, a youngster pressed into military duty far before his time.
Talulah Riley - Westworld
Punk rock fashionista Vivienne Westwood will be played by English actress Talulah Riley in Pistol, helping to popularize the trendy styles of the gritty '70s music scene. Despite acting since the early 2000s, Riley's most substantial role to date came as Angela on the HBO hit series Westworld.
Adapted from the Michael Crichton film, Westworld takes place at an adult theme park where the Artificial Intelligent hosts become sentient, rise up, and start a revolution against humanity. Riley played Angela during the first two seasons, an A.I. hostess who heroically sacrificed herself to free other hosts from their backups. One thing known about season 4 is that Angela will not return.
Alexander Arnold - Yesterday
Danny Boyle felt so good about Alexander Arnold's performance in his 2019 musical comedy Yesterday that he cast him in Pistol as well. Arnold will play Jamie Reed in Pistol, a cover artist for several Sex Pistol singles and albums.
As for the Beatles-inspired Yesterday, the uplifting story follows Jack Malik (Himesh Patel), a budding musician who awakes in an alternate fantasy world where he happens to be the only person who can remember the popular Beatles music, sending him into a hilarious tailspin of self-discovery. Arnold played Gavin in the film, a local music producer who helps Jack record a demo and advance his music career.
Razan Nassar - Get Even
In the 1970s, a group of Sex Pistol acolytes was referred to as the Bromley Contingent. One member of the group included Simone Thomas, a rabid fan who went on the road with the band at times. Thomas will be played by Razan Nassar, who most will recall from the popular Netflix teen thriller series Get Even.
Get Even concerns a group of marginalized high school girls who band together to exact revenge on their bullies. Nassar plays Amber, the best friend of the purported stereotypical popular girl Olivia (Jessica Alexander) and girlfriend of Rex (Joe Ashman).