‘Hijack’ Review: Idris Elba Masterfully Tackles Tension In Apple TV+’s Thriller

The next time I’m in a high-pressure situation, I’m going to take a moment and think to myself: What would Idris Elba do? I have no clue if the 50-year-old actor/DJ keeps his cool off-screen when life turns up the heat, but Apple TV+‘s new seven-episode thriller, Hijack, proves Elba was born to play the calm man in crisis, even if he’s faking it.

The terrifically tense series, premiering its first two episodes on June 28, follows a hijacked plane on a seven-hour flight from Dubai to London. Onboard Flight KA29 is Elba’s Sam Nelson, a father and expert business negotiator who uses his extraordinary gift of gab and keen powers of perception to try to diffuse the situation and save all 200 passengers. Meanwhile, on the ground officials race to put the pieces together and avoid international tragedy with help from several unlikely sources.

Early on in the series, Sam comforts a fellow distressed passenger by assuring her, “We’ve got one job to do. Just get through it…” His words tease a far more boring — but quite possibly safer! — version of events in which passengers complied with their captors’ demands and meekly hoped their nightmare would run its course. Rather than leaving their fate in the hands of armed strangers, Sam fights back, inciting a far more turbulent ride by steering the hijackers’ carefully crafted plans into uncharted territory.

One of Hijack‘s greatest assets is real-time storytelling, which fans of 24 know helps significantly raise the stakes. As clocks tick and flight time dwindles, mounting anxiety becomes more excruciating by the minute, making the thriller a perfect binge. Devouring all seven screeners in a 24-hour span was a riveting rush — minus some less compelling on-the-ground check-ins that occasionally detracted from a tight execution. So there’s a fear that Hijack’s suspense will drastically dissipate during its stretched-out weekly release schedule. But constantly moving parts, a vast cast, creative writing, and Elba’s powerful performance should be enough, not only to pull viewers back in but to keep them questioning everything. And by the end of Hijack’s penultimate episode, you’ll find yourself more invested in the final descent than ever before.

Even as characters spend the entirety of the series trying to resolve one crucial problem with a largely limited set, Hijack finds new ways to keep viewers hooked, propel the story forward, and keep the chaos fresh. It’s fascinating to watch resourceful passengers make use of the few items on hand. And though they may be trapped, crafty methods of communication between each other and the ground, plus check-ins with each section of the plane, prevent scenes from feeling claustrophobic. From fasten seatbelt dings to unexpected end credits music, the series makes sharp use of sound. As tensions rise, we also get increasingly raw looks at the emotional toll the worst-case scenario takes on everyone involved.

Hijack introduces key characters played by Christine Adams, Jude Cudjoe, Max Beesley, Ben Miles, Neil Maskell, Mohamed Elsandel, Aimée Kelly, Eve Myles, and more. But Elba, who also serves as executive producer, all but carries the plane on his back. In repeatedly risking his life to gain the hijackers’ trust while subtly manipulating the situation, Sam is both commanding and inventive. Amidst such a terrifying loss of control, Elba’s suave, laid-back disposition proves comforting and lustrous. And in bringing his affability to Sam, he’s able to humanize the passengers while slowly tapping into the hijackers’ psyches. You can almost see Elba’s gears turning as Sam listens, observes, and plots his next move. He remains a cool, capable, convincing leader even in the more dire circumstances, and despite his growing desperation to escape, he always aims to outsmart rather than attack.

In around the time it takes to fly from Dubai to London, Hijack brings viewers on a wild ride. The series has a number of hard-sell moments, but if you’re anything like me, the gripping twists and entertaining performances will take your fears of flying and love of Idris Elba to impressive new heights. As Sam would say, that represents success.

Hijack is currently streaming on Apple TV+.