Heat (2023 TV series)

Heat is a British-Australian action-thriller television series created by Jason Herbison and directed by Kate Kendall. It was broadcast over four consecutive days from 11 July 2023 on Channel 5 in the UK, and from 4 October 2023 on Network 10 in Australia. The plot focuses on two families as they take a joint vacation amidst the bushfire season. Heat stars Danny Dyer, Darren McMullen, Pia Miranda, and Jane Allsop. It was filmed in Melbourne and rural Victoria in November and December 2022.

Plot
Amidst the Australian bushfire season, Steve (Dyer) and Brad's (McMullen) families meet up for their annual vacation in the Victorian highlands, where secrets and lies are revealed.

Cast

 * Danny Dyer as Steve Cameron
 * Darren McMullen as Brad Fisher
 * Pia Miranda as Sarah Cameron
 * Jane Allsop as Louise Fisher
 * Matia Marks as Mia Cameron
 * Richie Morris as Jet Calloway
 * Matteo Annetta as Tom Cameron
 * Hunter Hayden as Kip Fisher
 * Olympia Valance as Sergeant Demi Angelos

Production
The series was commissioned along with Riptide, following the success of Lie With Me (2021). Both series were commissioned for Channel 5, and made by Fremantle Australia in partnership with Australia's Network Ten. Heat was created by Jason Herbison and produced by Natalie Mandel. The scripts have been written by Herbison, Margaret Wilson, and Anthony Ellis. Herbison stated: "I'm excited to partner with 10 and 5 once again for this tense family thriller, and ecstatic to have such an accomplished cast on board to bring it to life, along with Kate Kendall directing and Natalie Mandel driving the production." Commissioning editor at Channel 5 and Paramount+, Greg Barnett described the series as "a suspenseful and nail-biting thriller".

The cast was announced in November 2022. British actor Danny Dyer plays Steve Cameron, an ex-pat who moved to Australia with his best friend when they were young. Heat marks Dyer's first project since his departure from soap opera EastEnders. At the time of his casting, he stated: "Can't wait to get amongst this beautiful piece of work in Australia. I've always been intrigued about working there. It's my first gig since my long stint at EastEnders. Really powerful dark script and a strong Australian cast and crew. Let's have it!!!" Dyer flew out to Australia almost immediately after finishing up on EastEnders. He said that he had wanted to work in the sun, but the moment he arrived in Melbourne, it rained every day. Dyer was asked to put on an Australian accent for the role. He joked "They did ask me to be Australian but I said, 'Let's just calm down a little bit, let's not get carried away...'" He described the script as "really clever" and he was proud to have been part of the show.

Scottish actor Darren McMullen plays Steve's best friend Brad Fisher, who emigrated to Australia with him. Pia Miranda is Steve's Australian wife Sarah Cameron, while Matteo Annetta plays their son Tom and Matia Marks plays their daughter Mia, who suspects her father of having an affair. Brad's wife Louise is played by Jane Allsop and Hunter Hayden is their son Kip. Other cast members include Olympia Valance as Sergeant Angelos and Richie Morris as Mia's boyfriend Jet Calloway.

Heat is directed by Kate Kendall. Production on the four-part series began in mid-November 2022, and concluded in early December. It was filmed on-location in Melbourne, Plenty Gorge Park, and rural Victoria. The production received funding from VicScreen. The first promotional pictures from the series were released in February, followed by a teaser trailer on 1 March. The series began airing from 11 July 2023 in the UK. Heat will be broadcast on Network 10 in Australia from 4 October 2023.

Reception
Heat received mixed reviews. James Jackson of The Times gave the series three out of five stars, and branded it "the latest thriller to rot your brain over four nights." The Guardian's Hollie Richardson observed "There is something about Danny Dyer's cockney-geezer charisma that makes this otherwise mediocre four-part thriller worth a try."

Gerard Gilbert from the I also gave Heat three stars, calling it "laughably unsubtle" but "surprisingly moreish – tightly plotted, with the added dimension of an encroaching bush fire." Gilbert noted that due to Dyer's former soap opera role, he comes across as "a bit stiff to start with, like he's trying this new character on for size after so long playing the same person week in, week out." Gilbert found the series to be "a diverting ride with a refreshingly different and (given how the climate crisis is ravaging Oz) topical setting."