Series synopsis
The Hire is an American action & adventure crime television series that premiered on BMW Films on April 26, 2001. It ended on October 23, 2016. It was created by David Fincher. It stars Clive Owen, Stellan Skarsgård, Maury Chaykin and F. Murray Abraham.
BMW Films presents "The Hire", a series of nine short films produced for the Internet in 2001 and 2002, with a ninth short film following in 2016. A form of branded content, all nine short films feature popular filmmakers from across the globe, star Clive Owen as the "Driver", and highlight the performance aspects of various BMW automobiles.
Premise
BMW Films presents "The Hire", a series of nine short films produced for the Internet in 2001 and 2002, with a ninth short film following in 2016. A form of branded content, all nine short films feature popular filmmakers from across the globe, star Clive Owen as the "Driver", and highlight the performance aspects of various BMW automobiles.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Clive Owen as The Driver
- Stellan Skarsgård as Harvey Jacobs
- Maury Chaykin as The Kidnapper
- F. Murray Abraham as Airport Guru
Guest cast
- Mason Lee as Passenger
- Mickey Rourke as Husband
- Adriana Lima as Wife
- Forest Whitaker as The Employer
- Madonna as Star
- Michael Beattie as Manager
- Toru Tanaka Jr. as Bodyguard
- Lois Smith as Mother
- Kathryn Morris as Linda Delacroix
- Don Cheadle as Passenger
- Clifton Powell as FBI Agent
- Ray Liotta as FBI Agent
Episodes
This series spans 4 seasons with 15 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 0 | 6 | ||
| Season 1 | 5 | April 26, 2001 | June 21, 2001 |
| Season 2 | 3 | October 3, 2002 | October 31, 2002 |
| Season 3 | 1 | October 23, 2016 | October 23, 2016 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Driving Techniques BMW M3 racecar driver Bill Auberlen provides a behind the scenes look at the stunts employed in the BMW short films and explains driving techniques necessary for a safe shoot. |
|
| 2 |
Making of Season 1 Making of season 1 with a look at the expert drivers, the custom camera equipment, and the production work involved to set up the season's biggest stunts. |
|
| 3 |
Making of Season 2 Making of season 2 with a look at the expert drivers, the custom camera equipment, and the production work involved to set up the season's biggest stunts. |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Ambush On a dark freeway, a van swerves close to the driver and the door slides open. From inside, masked gunmen threaten to fire unless the driver stops and surrenders his passenger, a seemingly harmless man they accuse of smuggling diamonds. It's a simple choice: do or die. |
April 26, 2001 |
| 2 |
Chosen The driver meets a ship carrying an eight-year-old Tibetan boy at a dark, deserted New York shipyard. But he's not the only one waiting. |
May 10, 2001 |
| 3 |
The Follow The driver is hired by a nervous movie agent to spy on a paranoid actor's wife. During his tailing of the wife, the driver describes the right way to tail someone. As he follows her, he begins to fear what he might learn of her apparently tragic life. He discovers the wife is fleeing the country and returning to her mother's, and that she's been given a black eye, likely by her husband. He returns the money for the job, refusing to tell where the wife is, and drives off telling the agent never to call him again. |
May 24, 2001 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Hostage The driver races to locate a kidnapped victim locked in the trunk of an abandoned car somewhere on the water's edge. Linked to her only by cell phone, the driver narrows in on her location in a desperate race against time and tide. |
October 3, 2002 |
| 2 |
Ticker The driver rescues a mysterious messenger carrying an even more mysterious briefcase after an ambush on a rural highway. As a helicopter gunman relentlessly pursues them, a game of political intrigue plays out, with an unforeseen ending. |
October 17, 2002 |
| 3 |
Beat the Devil Decades ago, the legendary James Brown sold his soul to the devil for fame and fortune. Now he wishes to renegotiate. Hired to take Mr. Brown to a rendezvous with the devil, the driver soon finds himself entangled in fiendish plans. |
October 31, 2002 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Escape After the controversial disappearance of their Chief Medical Officer, a shadowy bio genetics company is under siege by the FBI for secretly cloning humans. Amidst the chaos, Molgen’s head mercenary Holt is sneaking out the last living clone, a young woman named Lily, to a mysterious buyer. Holt has hired the driver, accompanied by a heavily armed squadron of fellow Molgen mercenaries, to evade the authorities and deliver Lily and himself to the buyer. The journey takes an unexpected turn and Holt is forced to take matters into his own hands, as the driver once again demonstrates his mettle and extraordinary driving skills. |
October 23, 2016 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | BMW Films |
|---|---|
| First aired | April 26, 2001 |
| Last aired | October 23, 2016 |
| Runtime | 10 minutes |
| Status | Ended |