Deadline has partnered with The Brit List to profile some of the emerging writers who have made this year’s ranking of the best unproduced film and TV projects. Launched in 2007, The Brit List has previously featured projects including The King’s Speech and Responsible Child. In this piece, we profile Dylan Brady, an actor and writer who has made the list with his TV series script Discretion.
You may recognize Dylan Brady from his “blink and you’ll miss it” performance in Andor (his words), but we’re not here to talk about his contribution to the Star Wars universe. Brady’s writing career is also starting to take flight, with his entry into The Brit List being confirmation of his burgeoning credentials.
Brady makes the ranking with Discretion, and he has an advantage over some of his contemporaries in that the series has been picked up for development by Kudos, the British producer behind Spooks and SAS Rogue Heroes. Discretion follows struggling actor Jacob, who is offered a nannying job by a high-flying producer and her movie star husband. Jacob plots to seduce his employers and gain an advantage from their industry connections, but unwittingly walks into a trap.
Brady tells Deadline that inspiration for the series came from a real-life friend who took on a job as home-help to a high-powered couple, before becoming entwined in their lives. The project takes references from Fatal Attraction, Eyes Wide Shut, and Sunset Boulevard, but turns some of these storytelling conventions on their head.
“Erotic thrillers have historically always been very heterosexual, and it’s the marital unit that is the hero that has to be preserved at all costs from an evil slut, who threatens that unity,” he explains. “I thought about what this looks like in 2025. What if the slut is the hero and there is something rotten in the marriage? I wanted to break form and put a queer lens on it.”
Brady’s script generated interest, but he went with Kudos due to his pre-existing relationship with the company. Brady is also working with Kudos to adapt The Other Half, Charlotte Vassell’s novel about an ambitious young detective investigating the death of a posh socialite, found murdered on Hampstead Heath. Brady calls it a “Gen Z cop show,” which aims to kickstart a new generation of detective series. The project is in development with the BBC, but nothing is yet confirmed.
Brady’s previous writing work includes penning an episode of Everything Now, Left Bank Pictures’ young adult Netflix series, which was cancelled after one season to the disappointment of all involved. He was also mentored by All of Us Strangers director Andrew Haigh through the BFI Flare x BAFTA Cohort scheme. Brady says Haigh’s ability to “make everything feel so distinctly his” provided a good lesson in finding his own voice through his writing.
As Discretion and The Other Half bubble away at Kudos, Brady’s more immediate focus is on his self-funded short film ANON, which will star The Penguin and Happy Valley actor Con O’Neill. Shot entirely on dash cam in Brady’s home city of Derby, ANON spotlights a brief encounter between a closeted taxi driver (O’Neill) and a young male passenger, which leads to a frightening exchange with life-altering consequences. It’s a long way from Andor, but Brady considers it an important part of telling stories that matter to him.
Brady is repped by Knight Hall Agency.
