Strike Back starring Philip Winchester, Sullivan Stapleton, Rhona Mitra, Michelle Lukes, and Liam Garrigan returns on August 9, 2013 for a 10 episode third season. The Emmy-nominated series will air at 10pm on Friday nights, and joining the cast will be series newbies Robson Green, Dougray Scott, Milauna Jackson, and Zubin Varla.
Michael J Bassett returns as director, writer, and co-executive producer.
Season three begins with Winchester and Stapleton as Sgt Michael Stonebridge and Sgt Damien Scott taking some much-needed time off. “It’s a great start to the season, and one of my favorites, because Stonebridge and Scott are on holiday together,” says Stapleton. “They have to leave suddenly for a mission and get airdropped into the Colombian jungle. There, we find our newest cast member, Martinez, a DEA agent played by Milauna Jackson. She gets sassy with Scott, it’s great banter.”
“The fact that they go on holiday together is a big thing for the two,” says Winchester. “They’ve been through a lot together. They are riding motorcycles down the west coast of the U.S., and getting into all sorts of trouble. Stonebridge wants to head out to a spiritual pilgrimage known as Camino del Santiago, but to Scott, it’s just a walk, and they do a road trip instead.”
Winchester adds, “Stonebridge really needs the break, too. He’s suffered tremendous loss over the past two seasons and it’s scarred him, first with his Section 20 colleague Kate, and then with his wife in last season. Stonebridge knows that there’s loss and it’s going to continue to happen. He’s used his nine lives several times over. He’s not sure about the cause anymore. He likes the purity of soldiering and there’s definitely a gray area that’s a lot bigger than the black-and-white. He doesn’t like the politics and the gray area that interferes with the job, and he prefers the black-and-white.”
Details on Season 3:
Stealth counterterrorism unit Section 20 pursues a deadly terrorist network from Colombia to Lebanon to Eastern Europe, uncovering deadly plots that threaten the West. The team tracks the elusive terrorist al-Zuhari and his well-financed drug cartel partners as they target European and American interests, both at home and abroad, including Section 20 itself. The Section 20 team is often forced to resort to extraordinary measures to protect the greater good, making some members question their future with the unit.
Strike Back August Episodes:
Episode #21
Debut: FRIDAY, AUG. 9 (10:00-10:50 p.m. ET/PT)
Other playdates: Aug. 9 (11:00 p.m., midnight), 10 (9:00 p.m., 11:45 p.m.), 11 (noon, 11:00 p.m.), 12 (12:15 p.m., 11:45 p.m.), 13 (10:15 a.m., 12:05 a.m.), 14 (8:00 p.m.), 15 (9:00 p.m.), 21 (7:15 p.m.), 28 (6:30 p.m.), 30 (9:00 p.m.) and 31 (7:20 p.m.), and Sept. 4 (6:20 p.m.), 11 (5:30 p.m.), 18 (4:45 p.m.) and 25 (4:00 p.m.)
Enjoying a long-deserved vacation, Scott (Sullivan Stapleton) and Stonebridge (Philip Winchester) are recalled after a fellow Section 20 member dies while pursuing the elusive terrorist al-Zuhari in Beirut. A new lead sends them into the remote jungles of Colombia in pursuit of a known associate of al-Zuhari’s and deep in territory controlled by a powerful drug cartel.
Written by Simon Burke and Tim Vaughan & Michael J. Bassett; directed by Michael J. Bassett.
Episode #22
Debut: FRIDAY, AUG. 16 (10:00-10:50 p.m.)
Other playdates: Aug. 16 (11:30 p.m.), 17 (9:00 p.m., 11:45 p.m.), 18 (noon), 19 (10:30 a.m., 11:45 p.m.), 20 (2:10 p.m., 11:45 p.m.), 21 (8:00 p.m.), 22 (9:00 p.m.), 28 (7:20 p.m.), 30 (9:45 p.m.) and 31 (8:10 p.m.), and Sept. 4 (7:10 p.m.), 11 (6:20 p.m.), 18 (5:30 p.m.) and 25 (4:50 p.m.)
Out of options and hunted by the resourceful cartel, Section 20 goes for a longshot and attempts an assault in downtown Bogota, hoping to obtain intel on one of al-Zuhari’s key people. Meanwhile, Dalton (Rhona Mitra) looks for the source that exposed her team in Beirut, but discovers a surprising ally and a piece of al-Zuhari’s plan.
Written by Simon Burke and Tim Vaughan & Michael J. Bassett; directed by Michael J. Bassett.
Episode #23
Debut: FRIDAY, AUG. 23 (10:00-10:50 p.m.)
Other playdates: Aug. 23 (11:30 p.m.), 24 (9:00 p.m., 11:50 p.m.), 25 (noon), 26 (10:20 a.m., 11:45 p.m.), 27 (2:20 p.m., midnight), 28 (8:10 p.m.), 29 (9:00 p.m.), 30 (10:30 p.m.) and 31 (9:00 p.m.), and Sept. 2 (12:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.), 3 (11:50 a.m., midnight), 4 (8:00 p.m.), 5 (9:00 p.m.), 11 (7:10 p.m.), 18 (6:20 p.m.) and 25 (5:35 p.m.)
Although they are uncertain of others’ loyalties, the team must work with an asset in Beirut to get a lead on James Leatherby (Dougray Scott), a dangerous and unpredictable operative with ties to al-Zuhari.
Written by James Dormer; directed by Julian Holmes.
Episode #24
Debut: FRIDAY, SEPT. 6 (10:00-10:50 p.m.)
Other playdates: Sept. 6 (11:30 p.m.), 7 (9:00 p.m., 1:15 a.m.), 9 (1:15 p.m., 12:10 a.m.), 10 (11:45 a.m., 11:40 p.m.), 11 (8:00 p.m.), 12 (9:00 p.m.), 18 (7:10 p.m.) and 25 (6:25 p.m.)
Section 20 attempts a risky rescue for a potential new ally. Now veering close to the edge, but determined to find the truth, Dalton goes AWOL with a detainee.
Written by James Dormer; directed by Julian Holmes.
