Whiskey on the Rocks Hulu Release Date

The series is a playful take on what truly happened during the dramatic days at the turn of the month between October and November 1981, when the Soviet submarine U-137 ran aground in the Karlskrona archipelago. Never before has the world been closer to full-scale global conflict and all responsibility now rests on the shoulders of one man, Sweden’s Prime Minister Thorbjörn Fälldin.

Whiskey on the Rocks, a political satire inspired by real events, is the first Nordic Original series to premiere on Disney+ in select countries and Hulu in the U.S. on January 22, 2025. All six episodes will be released at once. The series is the latest project from the team behind Academy Award-nominated Swedish film The 100- Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared and is a coproduction between Swedish national broadcaster SVT and The Walt Disney Company Nordic & Baltic.

In the early hours of October 28, 1981, a Soviet nuclear Whiskey class submarine was spotted aground inside a restricted Swedish military area. The world teetered on the brink of disaster. With global superpowers on edge, the eyes of the world turned to Sweden’s calm and collected prime minister, Thorbjörn Fälldin, a former sheep farmer, who faced the immense challenge of keeping peace between Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev and U.S. President Ronald Reagan.

“The true story behind Whiskey on the Rocks is both dramatic and absurd, and something we felt would work very well as political satire. The ambition was to use a visual and suspenseful language to contrast and enhance the humor, in a way you rarely see in comedies. Then when it shifts into true suspense we are already in that visual world. And although the events in the series happened more than 40 years ago, looking around the world today, it is frighteningly topical”, says director Björn Stein.

Alongside Rolf Lassgård, Whiskey on the Rocks stars Elsa Saisio, Anders Mossling, Niklas Engdahl, Filip Berg and Adam Lundgren. Also starring is Lithuanian actor Kęstutis Stasys Jakštas as Leonid Brezhnev and British actor Mark Noble as Ronald Reagan.

“We are very happy to have partnered up with SVT and Humanoids on Whiskey on the Rocks. Bringing the first Nordic production to Disney+ is incredible. The series is a testament to the richness of our stories, the talent of our region, and the global appeal of Nordic storytelling. We can’t wait for audiences around the world to experience the alternate version of what happened outside Karlskrona in 1981.”, says Vibeke Lia, Director Programming and Production, The Walt Disney Company Nordic & Baltic.

With its mix of historical context, humor, and thrilling action, Whiskey on the Rocks is poised to entertain a global audience while shedding light on a lesser known but pivotal moment in history.

The series is based on a story by author Jonas Jonasson, who had his breakthrough with the successful novel The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared. Henrik Jansson-Schweizer (Thicker Than Water, Superswede) is the series’ screenwriter. The director is Björn Stein (Shed No Tears, Midnight Sun), and the producer is Jan Marnell.

Executive producers for Humanoids: Patrick Nebout, Henrik Jansson-Schweizer, and Magnus Bimberg. Executive producers for SVT: Sonja Hermele and Anna Croneman. Executive producer for Disney+: Nanna Mailand-Mercado. Whiskey on the Rocks was shot in Sweden and Lithuania. The series’ 6 episodes will be broadcasted on SVT1 during Christmas, 2024. The global premiere date on Disney+ is January 22, 2025 (except Sweden).

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