'Roadkill': Helen McCrory plays PM Dawn Ellison in Hugh Laurie-starrer and Potterheads might recognize her
A new political thriller starring Hugh Laurie should be on your watch list if it's already isn't. 'Roadkill' is an intense story about a politician's downfall starring Hugh Laurie as the public favorite Peter Laurence. Just off the courts winning a fresh libel case by slightly tweaking the truth, he is ironically promoted to Minister of Justice. Slowly, the walls that Peter built around him to protect all his interests — personal and professional — begin to crumble as buried skeletons re-emerge.
In this entire plot, one character is of key importance, Prime Minister Dawn Ellison. Played by Helen McCrory, Dawn promotes Peter to be the Minister of Justice despite knowing that he has very little to do with the field given his character. Her adviser Julia Blythe (Olivia Vinall) facilitates this information to the PM and she takes it from there. We bet you feel like you've seen Dawn Ellison before. And in fact, you have. If you have watched any of the 'Harry Potter' franchise movies, you might remember her playing the role of Narcissa Malfoy.
Wife of Lucius Malfoy (Jason Isaacs), mother of Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) and sister to Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter), Narcissa also played a key role in the final installment of the franchise. During the final phase of the Battle of Hogwarts in 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows', Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) attempted to kill Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) in the Forbidden Forest using the Killing Curse. It is here that Narcissa chose to betray her allegiance with the Dark Lord.
Unaware of Draco's fate, Narcissa lied to Voldemort when he asked her to check if Harry was dead. Here, she quietly asked Harry if Draco was alive. Harry revealed to her that he was and she lied to her master in order to get closer to Draco. In this way, she inadvertently helped Harry in finally defeating the Dark Lord and saving the wizarding world. Throughout the franchise, it was a mother's love that saved Harry from several near-death instances. Even in the final, most important moments in the franchise, it was, after all, a mother's love for her child that saved the day.
McCrory's character on 'Roadkill' is also pivotal to the future of Peter Laurence. Playing the Prime Minister is no easy feat especially with minding someone like Peter who is known to break the rules. Will she be, just like in 'Harry Potter', be able to save the day?
'Roadkill' airs on Masterpiece on PBS at 9/8c.