New Sky Original drama Possession, formerly known as Inheritance, is now available on Sky after part-filming in Bristol with our support last year.
Starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Loki, Surface), Jonny Lee Miller (The Crown, Elementary), Sheldon Shepherd (Bob Marley: One Love, Better Mus’ Come) and Bel Powley (A Small Light, The Morning Show), Possession is a gripping supernatural thriller that blends eerie mystery with the vibrant energy of Jamaica, following one woman’s journey into long-buried secrets, identity and the past’s enduring hold on the present.
Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Bristol lawyer Claudia McKenzie in Possession
Set between Bristol and Jamaica, the five-part limited event series follows Claudia (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), an ambitious young mixed-race lawyer, who travels to Jamaica to challenge an inheritance claim made by a local man, Cudjoe East (Sheldon Shepherd), against Oliver Connaught (Jonny Lee Miller), a wealthy white aristocrat. But the case takes an unsettling turn when Claudia discovers that the disputed estate is the very place that has haunted her nightmares: Hope Hill, the Connaught family’s former plantation. As Claudia and Oliver dig deeper, they uncover a disturbing link between the plantation’s brutal past and the injustices still shaping the present.
Actor Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who stars as lead character Claudia McKenzie in the series, says: “[Possession] explores identity, heritage and the enduring legacy of slavery between Bristol and Jamaica, as well as the impact of colonialism and how the past continues to shape the present. For Claudia, it becomes a journey back to her roots and an awakening to parts of herself she has long kept at a distance.”
Claudia travels to Jamaica to Hope Hill House. Interior sets for the house were built at Bristol’s Bottle Yard Studios.
Sets for the interiors of Possession’s central setting Hope Hill House, depicted in both present day and 1760’s Jamaica, were built at The Bottle Yard’s TBY2 facility (view BTS Gallery here). Our Film Office team supported on location at a number of sites including Redcliffe Wharf, the Former Bank of England and Broad Street. Kings Weston House was the present day setting for Oliver Connaught’s home, and The Vassall Centre in Fishponds was the 1990’s setting for the Bristol Maternity Hospital where Claudia is born. A property on Queen Square provided the setting for Reuben Waite’s office and Kenneth Connaught’s town house. Origin Workspace on Berkeley Square was the present day setting for Ellis & Shaw Offices. Further afield, Ammerdown House in Radstock, Somerset was also used for filming. After three months filming in Bristol, the production team moved on to complete the shoot in Jamaica.
Kate Ogborn, Series Producer, says: “We filmed Possession at TBY2 and on location in and around Bristol from December 2024 to February 2025. Our story is set in Bristol and in Jamaica across two timelines, present day and 1760s. We had a fantastic experience filming at TBY2, the studio was perfect for our needs where we recreated the interiors of our Plantation House and filmed exteriors in Jamaica. Our Production Designer worked with a local construction team who did an excellent job of the set builds. Our director and creative team were very happy with the variety of locations we found to depict Bristol in both timelines. We had an excellent local crew and felt very well supported by the Film Office during our prep and shoot in Bristol. I wouldn’t hesitate to come back to Bristol!”
(Top L-R) Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Jonny Lee Miller, Sheldon Shepherd; (Bottom) Nadean Rawlins and Gugu Mbatha-Raw in Possession
Director Storm Saulter says: “I’m constantly engaging with art, colonial paintings, and Caribbean visual history, especially how power is framed and who is centred in those images. Walking around places like Bristol and seeing the wealth, architecture and artworks tied back to slavery added another layer. It helped connect the past to the present.”
Other cast includes Nadean Rawlins (Bob Marley: One Love, Sprinter) as Mercy, Sean Gilder (Mary & George, Slow Horses) as Tom McKenzie, Olunike Adeliyi (The Fire Inside, Mike) as Patsy Dawkins, Richard Dillane (Wolf Hall, The Crown) as Eugene Desfrienes, Diveen Henry (The Day of the Jackal, Manhunt) as Flora, Jack Bandeira (Happy Valley, Black Mirror) as Kenneth Connaught, Shantol Jackson (Death in Paradise, Yardie) as Sarah, Jeff Crossley (Bob Marley: One Love, Sprinter) as Angelo and Safina Simpson as Betina.
Possession is produced by Snowed-In in association with Sky Studios. Written and created by Karla Crome, the series is based on an original story created by Jefferson Bannis and directed by Storm Saulter. Executive Producers are Ruth Kenley-Letts, Jenny van der Lande, Neil Blair, Karla Crome, Storm Saulter, Sam Hoyle, Serena Thompson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Jonny Lee Miller. The Development Producer is Roxanne Harvey and the Series Producer is Kate Ogborn. The series will be available on Sky in the UK and Ireland. NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution is handling international sales of the series.
All episodes of Possession are available now on Sky and streaming service NOW.
All images courtesy Sky