The BBC has just dropped the first official details of its most anticipated thriller for 2026, and it is being hailed as the spiritual successor to Shetland, but escalated to a much darker and more violent level.

At the core of “Mint” is Shannon – a naive young woman with a fierce, romantic heart, who is imprisoned within the city’s most feared crime dynasty. Raised inside the “velvet-walled prison” of the family gang, she has spent her life witnessing violence she was never allowed to touch – until now.

The Crime Dynasty Through a Female Lens

The plot centers on Shannon’s internal struggle as she desperately seeks love under the enormous shadow of her father (Dylan), her devoted mother (Cat), her older brother (Luke), and especially the indomitable family matriarch, Ollie – the woman who holds the real power. When Arran, a mysterious outsider, arrives on the scene, the family’s entire order is blown apart.

The core message is delivered with an emotional punch: This is a story about soaring romance and crushing heartbreak, about darkness and tragedy, where Shannon must search for her identity amidst the plain weirdness of the criminal elite and pursue power on her own terms.

Created by acclaimed filmmaker Charlotte Regan (Scrapper) in her television debut, Mint is produced by the teams behind hits like Vigil, The Capture, and Mood.

Regan stated: “This is a crime drama unlike any you’ve ever seen. It champions the females in the family, exposing a very different side to what a life of crime is really like for those who live alongside that world – the wives, the daughters, the matriarchs who hold everything together while the men just play gangsters.”

Insiders describe the tone as “like Succession soaked in blood, set to a Lana Del Rey soundtrack.” Sunday-night viewers are warned to prepare for scenes of emotional brutality that make Bodyguard look like a cozy knit.

Douglas Henshall Returns in a Reversed Role

The BBC is keeping the full cast list tightly under wraps until the trailer drops next month, but one name confirmed to cause a shockwave is Douglas Henshall. The former Detective Jimmy Perez of Shetland will reappear in a pivotal, chilling role that sources say is “unlike anything he’s ever played – think Jimmy Perez if he had chosen the other side of the law.”

Early casting rumors swirling around the production include a BAFTA-winning actress in talks to play Grandma Ollie – the true puppet master of the criminal empire. Additionally, one of Britain’s most in-demand young stars is targeting the role of Shannon, and a breakout star from Skins and Euphoria is reportedly screen-testing for the mysterious Arran – the outsider who will shatter the family.

Mint is different because it turns the camera onto the women and children who inherit the trauma of the underworld. It asks thorny questions: What happens to the daughter who just wants to fall in love when every potential boyfriend has to be vetted for wiretaps? How far will a mother go to protect her child from the life she married into? And can a grandmother who built an empire on bodies ever allow her granddaughter to walk away?

A production source revealed: “Shetland was about islands and silence. This is about bloodlines and screaming. If Shetland broke your heart, Mint will reach in and squeeze until something snaps.”

Filming begins in Glasgow and the Scottish Highlands in early 2026 for a late-autumn broadcast on BBC One and iPlayer.

Buckle up. The family business just got personal.