Manhunt (miniseries)

This article is about the 2024 TV miniseries. For other uses, see Manhunt (disambiguation).

Manhunt is an American historical drama miniseries created by showrunner Monica Beletsky, adapted from James L. Swanson's book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer. The series follows Edwin Stanton's search for John Wilkes Booth in the aftermath of Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Directed by Carl Franklin and starring Tobias Menzies, the series was produced for Apple TV+, and released on March 15, 2024.^[1]

Manhunt
Promotional poster
Genre	Conspiracy thriller Historical drama
Created by	Monica Beletsky
Based on	Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson
Showrunner	Monica Beletsky
Directed by	Carl Franklin John Dahl Eva Sørhaug
Starring	Tobias Menzies Anthony Boyle Lovie Simone Will Harrison Brandon Flynn Damian O'Hare Glenn Morshower Patton Oswalt Matt Walsh Hamish Linklater
Opening theme	"Egún" by Danielle Ponder
Composer	Bryce Dessner
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of episodes	7
Production
Executive producers	Monica Beletsky Layne Eskridge Kate Barry James L. Swanson Michael Rotenberg Richard Abate Frank Smith Naia Cucukov Carl Franklin
Production companies	POV Entertainment Dovetale Productions Monarch Pictures Walden Media 3 Arts Entertainment Lionsgate Television Apple Studios
Original release
Network	Apple TV+
Release	March 15 (2024-03-15) – April 19, 2024 (2024-04-19)

Premise

After President Abraham Lincoln's assassination, his secretary of war and friend Edwin Stanton begins the manhunt to track down Lincoln's assassin John Wilkes Booth.^[2]

Cast and characters

Main

• Tobias Menzies as Edwin Stanton
• Anthony Boyle as John Wilkes Booth
• Lovie Simone as Mary Simms
• Will Harrison as David Herold
• Brandon Flynn as Edwin Stanton Jr.
• Damian O'Hare as Thomas Eckert
• Glenn Morshower as Andrew Johnson
• Patton Oswalt as Lafayette C. Baker
• Matt Walsh as Samuel Mudd
• Hamish Linklater as Abraham Lincoln

Supporting

• Lili Taylor as Mary Todd Lincoln
• Josh Stewart as Sandford Conover / James Wallace
• C.J. Hoff as Louis J. Weichmann
• Larry Pine as William H. Seward
• Anne Dudek as Ellen Stanton
• Daniel Croix as Joseph "Peanuts" Burroughs
• Spencer Treat Clark as Lewis Powell
• Carrie Lazar as Mary Surratt
• Tommie Turvey as George Atzerodt
• Walker Babington as Edman Spangler
• Josh Mikel as John Surratt
• Josh Bowman as Frederick W. Seward
• Carlos Luckie Jr. as William Bell
• Maxwell Korn as Robert Todd Lincoln
• Betty Gabriel as Elizabeth Keckley
• Roger Payano as Oswell Swann
• Kevin Patrick Murphy as Lieutenant Luther Baker
• Antonio J Bell as Milo Simms
• Tom McCafferty as Edward Gorsuch
• John Billingsley as Joseph Holt
• Anthony Marble as George Nicholas Sanders
• Christian Robinson as Cuffy Stevens
• Thomas Francis Murphy as Colonel Samuel Cox
• Elvis Nolasco as Frederick Douglass
• Mark Rand as Salmon P. Chase
• Nick Westrate as Edwin Booth
• Bill Kelly as Jonathan Lamson
• Wayne Pére
• William Mark McCullough as Sergeant Boston Corbett
• Judd Lormand as Colonel Everton Conger
• Alex Collins as General William Tecumseh Sherman
• Kevin Mikal Curry as James Thornton
• Justin Kucsulain as Willie Jett
• Helene Henry as Julia Garrett
• Bill Winkler as Jeremiah Dyer
• Craig Nigh as Jefferson Davis
• Robert C. Treveiler as Lorenzo Thomas
• Eric Mendenhall as Oliver Otis Howard

Episodes

No.	Title [3]	Directed by	Written by [3]	Original release date [1]
1	"Pilot"	Carl Franklin	Teleplay by : Monica Beletsky	March 15, 2024 (2024-03-15)
2	"Post Mortem"	Carl Franklin	Teleplay by : Monica Beletsky Story by : Monica Beletsky & Matt Johnson	March 15, 2024 (2024-03-15)
3	"Let the Sheep Flee"	John Dahl	Monica Beletsky & Ben H. Winters	March 22, 2024 (2024-03-22)
4	"The Secret Line"	John Dahl	Monica Beletsky & Tim Brittain	March 29, 2024 (2024-03-29)
5	"A Man of Destiny"	Eva Sørhaug	Monica Beletsky & Matthew Fennell	April 5, 2024 (2024-04-05)
6	"Useless"	Eva Sørhaug	Monica Beletsky & Jan Oxenberg	April 12, 2024 (2024-04-12)
7	"The Final Act"	Eva Sørhaug	Monica Beletsky	April 19, 2024 (2024-04-19)

Production

In January 2022, a series adaptation of Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson was first announced. The series was created and written by showrunner Monica Beletsky as the first project in her overall deal with Apple, and Carl Franklin will direct.^[2] The following month, Anthony Boyle and Lovie Simone were added to the cast, with Boyle portraying John Wilkes Booth.^[4] Matt Walsh would be cast as Samuel Mudd in March.^[5] Additional casting would be announced in May.^[6]

Pre-production for the series began in Savannah, Georgia in February 2022, with filming beginning in May and set to finish by October.^[7] Filming of the assassination at Ford's Theatre began on location at the Miller Theater, a historic location in Philadelphia, in June 2022.^[8]

The programme was presented as being partly fictionalised, with some characters and events created for dramatic purposes.^[9]

Reception

Critical response

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an 87% approval rating with an average rating of 7.3/10, based on 46 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Dramatizing a flashpoint in American history with hot-blooded performances and contemporary resonance, Manhunt transcends the trappings of wax museum recreation to deliver addicting entertainment."^[10] Metacritic assigned a score of 65 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".^[11] Angie Han praised the series' themes and the performances of the cast.^[12]

Accolades

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
Gotham TV Awards	June 4, 2024	Outstanding Performance in a Limited Series	Tobias Menzies	Nominated	[13]

See also

• The Lincoln Conspiracy (1977)
• The Day Lincoln Was Shot (1998)
• The Conspirator (2010)
• Lincoln (2012)
• Killing Lincoln (2013)