Run Away (TV series)

Run Away
Release poster
Genre	Thriller
Based on	Run Away by Harlan Coben
Developed by	Danny Brocklehurst
Directed by	Nimer Rashed Isher Sahota
Starring	James Nesbitt Alfred Enoch Ruth Jones Minnie Driver Ellie de Lange Ingrid Oliver Amy Gledhill Jon Pointing Maeve Courtier-Lilley Adrian Greensmith Sam Swainsbury Annette Badland Tracy-Ann Oberman Ellie Henry
Composers	Luke Richards David Buckley
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	8
Production
Executive producers	Harlan Coben Danny Brocklehurst Nicola Shindler Richard Fee Nimer Rashed
Producers	Guy Hescott Will McDonagh
Editor	David Fisher
Running time	41–50 minutes
Production companies	Final Twist Productions Quay Street Productions
Original release
Network	Netflix
Release	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)

Run Away is a British television miniseries made for streaming service Netflix, adapted from a novel by Harlan Coben. The series premiered on 1 January 2026 and it stars James Nesbitt, Alfred Enoch, Ruth Jones, Minnie Driver, and Ellie de Lange.

Premise

The drama follows investment banker Simon Greene (James Nesbitt), as he frantically searches for his runaway, drug-addicted daughter, Paige (Ellie de Lange). His investigation plunges him into a dangerous underworld, where dark secrets and violent truths threaten to shatter his seemingly perfect life. Along the way, Simon uncovers Paige’s hidden connections, including a mysterious young man named Aaron (Thomas Flynn), and confronts shocking revelations about his own family.

Cast

• James Nesbitt as Simon Greene
• Alfred Enoch as DS Isaac Fagbenle
• Ruth Jones as Elena Ravenscroft, a private investigator
• Minnie Driver as Ingrid Greene, Simon's wife
• Ellie de Lange as Paige Greene, Simon and Ingrid's missing daughter
• Ingrid Oliver as Yvonne Previdi
• Amy Gledhill as DC Ruby Todd
• Jon Pointing as Ash
• Maeve Courtier-Lilley as Dee Dee/Holly
• Adrian Greensmith as Sam Greene
• Sam Swainsbury as Professor Van De Beek
• Annette Badland as Lou
• Tracy-Ann Oberman as Jessica Kinberg
• Ellie Henry as Anya Greene
• Lucian Msamati as Cornelius Faber, a friend and neighbour of Paige
• Thomas Flynn as Aaron Corval
• Simon Thorp as Sebastian Thorpe
• Marcus Fraser as Rocco, Paige's dealer
• Finty Williams as Enid Corval
• Joe McGann as Wiley Corval
• Chenée Taylor as Judy, Paige's college roommate
• Clara Lioe as Katie, Paige's college roommate
• Ken Bones as Casper Vartage , the cult leader

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
1	"Seeing is Believing"	Nimer Rashed	Danny Brocklehurst	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
Paige Greene has been missing for six months when her father, Simon, finds her in a park, under the influence of drugs. Simon’s attempt to take Paige home results in a physical confrontation with her boyfriend, Aaron, who is later found dead. Meanwhile, a woman named DeeDee and her companion, Ash, go on a killing spree. Simon and his wife, Ingrid, continue searching for Paige and, with the help of Cornelius, meet with her dealer, Rocco. Shortly after, another dealer named Luther shoots Ingrid. Cornelius shoots Luther in the shoulder, and Ingrid is left in a coma. Police once again question Simon, who maintains that he does not know who shot Luther.
2	"Tattoos While U Wait"	Nimer Rashed	Tom Farrelly	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
Private investigator Elena Ravenscroft uncovers a connection between the disappearance of Henry and another victim, Damien, who is murdered by Ash and DeeDee. Meanwhile, Simon Greene’s search for Paige leads him to an adoption agency, where he discovers secrets about his wife Ingrid’s past involvement with a cult known as The Shining Truth. As Ash and DeeDee’s killing spree escalates, they murder Damien—shot by Ash—and later kill a witness. A photograph of Aaron and Paige found among their targets suggests a link to Aaron’s murder.
3	"Breaking Point"	Nimer Rashed	Amanda Duke	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
Simon receives disturbing information about Paige at a memorial, while Elena visits a mysterious tattoo parlor that reveals a connection between Paige and another missing person, Henry. Meanwhile, hired killers Ash and DeeDee attempt to carry out a hit on Paige and Aaron, leading to a violent confrontation with drug dealer Rocco. During the clash, Ash is killed by Rocco’s associate, Luther, and DeeDee is pushed to her death by a mysterious woman linked to the cult known as The Shining Truth.
4	"A Different Time"	Isher Sahota	Charlotte Coben	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
Simon investigates Paige’s university life and past, discovering her connection to Aaron. Meanwhile, Elena uncovers disturbing links between adoption cases and a cult, while DeeDee and Ash confront their traumatic past at a former foster home. The encounter spirals into violence as they attempt to escape the shadows of their history.
5	"Forever Be The Shining Truth"	Isher Sahota	Charlotte Coben	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
Simon and Elena’s investigation intensifies as Simon collects DNA samples and confronts his family about long-buried secrets. At the same time, Elena uncovers Aaron’s ties to a cult known as Shining Haven and the existence of a possible half-sibling, leading her into dangerous encounters with cult members. The revelations culminate in a shocking twist involving Ingrid’s past and a cult leader, ending in a violent confrontation that leaves Ingrid rushed into surgery.
6	"The Man I Knew"	Isher Sahota	Tom Farrelly	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
While police focus on drug gangs, Elena tracks down Aaron’s adoptive mother figure, Alison, leading to a dangerous confrontation. DeeDee poses as Alison and lures Elena to a cabin where she is shot by Ash. They see the message from Simon on his phone and Deedee decides to kill him too, despite Ash's reluctance who wants to stick to their original plan to kill Casper’s other secret sons. But Deedee pushes him to hunt for Simon. Simon and Lou report police about Elena's absence along with her findings about the cult.
7	"Sliding Doors"	Nimer Rashed	Danny Brocklehurst	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
Simon and Cornelius go to meet Rocco to receive Paige in exchange for 60,000 pounds. But their meeting is sabotaged by Ash and DeeDee who kill both Rocco and Luther. Cornelius manages to kill Ash and an enraged DeeDee chases Simon and shoots him but just before she could kill him, she is killed by Mother Adiona. Police raids Shining Truth and arrests Casper and his two sons but they do not find Paige there. Mother Adiona visits Simon in hospital and tells him whole truth about shining page. Her motive to sabotage shining truth was to save her son who was also on Ash and Deedee's list. Later when Isaac visits Simon to update him about the raid at shining star, Simon does not tell him about visit from Mother Adiona.
8	"It Stays With Us"	Nimer Rashed	Danny Brocklehurst	1 January 2026 (2026-01-01)
Simon returns to see Ingrid and find Paige sitting next to her comatose mother. She tells him that she was in rehab all that time and has to return there to complete her program. Ingrid comes out of coma and whole family welcomes Paige back from rehab. Simon confronts Ingrid about the truth and she tells him that she actually killed Aaron that night but on her way out of his apartment, Luther saw her and that is why he shot her. However Simon is still not convinced and feels if there is something missing. He goes to meet Doug Mulzer and Sebastian Thorpe. Later he speaks with Paige who confirms his suspicion that Aaron was actually her half brother. Ingrid became pregnant during her time in Italy when she was member of Shining Truth and gave Aaron for adoption. Ingrid found out about him on the family website and when she was drugged and raped by Doug Mulzer, Aaron beat him in the gym. Under the pretense to help her cope with the trauma, he got Paige on drugs but in reality he wanted her to be an addict so that she always stays with him. Paige convinces her father not to tell her mother that she actually killed her own son. Simon agrees to that and whole family has a happy meal.

Production

Netflix said in January 2024, it would be adapting Run Away by Harlan Coben with Coben as executive producer on the series.

A full cast list announced on 21 January 2025 showed James Nesbitt and Alfred Enoch leading the cast alongside Ruth Jones, Minnie Driver, Ellie de Lange, Ingrid Oliver, Amy Gledhill, Jon Pointing, and Maeve Courtier-Lilley.

Filming started in England in January 2025. Locations included Saddleworth Moor and Greater Manchester, as well as Liverpool. The exterior of the depicted Lanford University is the former S. Katharine's College building, now part of Liverpool Hope University and this is edited together with scenes in the University of Manchester Old Quadrangle.

Music

The score for the first two episodes was composed by David Buckley and Luke Richards, with Luke Richards receiving sole composer credit for the remaining six episodes.

Release

The eight-part series was released on 1 January 2026.

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 82% approval rating based on 28 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "A sturdy adaptation from the Harlan Coben canon, Run Away sprints through a series of twists while never losing steam thanks to James Nesbitt's committed performance." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, gave a score of 56 out of 100 based on 8 critics, indicating "mixed or average".

External links

• Run Away at IMDb