Richard Gere to make TV return with role in BBC drama

Pretty Woman actor Richard Gere is making a return to TV after nearly 30 years.

He's to play a US media mogul in the new BBC drama, alongside Peaky Blinders star Helen McCrory and On Chesil Beach's Billy Howle.

Gere said he was "so pleased" to make his small screen comeback in the series, written by Tom Rob Smith.

He joins the ranks of other Hollywood actors, like Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon, making the move to TV.

MotherFatherSon, to be broadcast on BBC Two, tells the story of businessman Max (Gere), his heiress ex-wife Kathryn (McCrory) and their son Caden (Howle).

Helen McCrory and Billy Howle play mother and son in the eight-part series

The family empire is threatened when Caden, who runs Max's UK newspaper, spirals out of control - with consequences for "the future of the family, its empire, and a country on the brink of change", said a spokesman.

The series will consist of eight hour-long episodes made by BBC Studios Drama London.

Gere said: "I'm so pleased to be working now with the BBC on this extraordinary eight hour project with such talented people and which resonates so much to the time we live in."

Who else has gone from film to TV?

Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman star in Big Little Lies

• Big Little Lies has a stellar Hollywood cast - including Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern and Reese Witherspoon - and has won armfuls of awards

• Witherspoon is also set to appear in an HBO series with Jennifer Aniston about breakfast TV

• Anthony Hopkins, Thandie Newton and Ed Harris - who have all appeared in huge films - now star together in Westworld

• Christian Slater had long been known for film roles before accepting a part in Mr Robot

• Ewan McGregor joined the third series of the TV adaptation of Fargo, despite being best known for his career in film

Tom Rob Smith, who wrote The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, said: "Telling this story was always going to depend upon gathering an extraordinary cast."

He described Gere's roles as "iconic and complex", while saying McCrory showed "heartbreaking emotional tenderness and immense power", with Howle "one of the most exciting young actors" he'd ever seen.

McCrory, also a prolific stage actress, said the script was "completely original and full of surprises", while Howle said he was "humbled to be given the opportunity to portray such a complex role".

Filming is starting in London and Spain this summer, but no date has been set yet for when MotherFatherSon will air.