WAR – Series One (2026)

Sky’s new drama, War, takes a peek into the messy world of high-profile marriage splits. The series opens on the eve of an explosive divorce between tech billionaire Morgan Henderson (Dominic West) and international film star Carla Duval (Sienna Miller). Convinced her husband can’t keep it in his pants, she hires a honeytrap to lure him into the bedroom as proof of his infidelity. When he more than happily obliges, she gets her legal team to work.

War isn’t about the breakdown of a marriage through infidelity; it’s about two rival legal firms and the lengths they’ll go to ensure they win. Carla’s team is a flashy new firm, Taylor & Byrne, run by husband-and-wife duo Nicholas Taylor (James McArdle) and Serena Byrne (Phoebe Fox). Morgan’s team comprises old-school, renowned lawyers Cathcart & Sons, led by Beatrice Ubosi (Nina Sosanya) and St. John Smallwood (Pip Torrens).

Serena and Nicholas previously worked at Cathcart & Sons, where they learned every dirty trick in the book from St. John and Beatrice. However, this also means St. John and Beatrice know their former proteges’ weaknesses and their likely next moves.

Yet Cathcart & Sons has one big trick up its sleeve: an inexperienced but eager lawyer named Johnny Warren (Archie Renaux). Hired by Taylor & Byrne to work on their first big case, he secretly reports his new bosses’ actions back to Cathcart & Sons. His subversion keeps the momentum going when the show gets bogged down in legal jargon and boardroom snark.

Carla and Morgan’s divorce starts infiltrating the lives of their legal teams and aides as well. Soon, everyone is using each other and their connections to gain the upper hand in a career-defining case. Unfortunately, the supporting cast is severely underused, especially when their private lives are often juicier than the central legal battle.

Created and written by George Kay (Hijack, Lupin), this eight-part series will fill the void that shows like Succession (2018-2023) have left on our screens. War is a character-driven, fast-paced, dialogue-rich drama containing some of the sharpest zingers on TV this year. It’s refreshingly smart television that demands the audience’s full attention.

War isn’t the most action-packed series you’ll watch. It primarily follows the behind-the-scenes machinations of the divorce, with long, dialogue-heavy scenes as the couple attempts mediation before the inevitable court battle. It’s the visual equivalent of a high-stakes tennis match of snark: she wants money and protection for their son Gabriel (Aran Murphy); he wants to protect his assets and humiliate her. Those who follow celebrity gossip will recognise real-life details, such as him serving divorce papers on the red carpet.

Like Succession or Industry, War is razor-sharp and wickedly funny. The cast clearly delights in hurling these often abhorrent lines at one another. Lose focus for a second and you’ll miss a brilliant zinger. Thankfully, the show is far less stressful to watch than its predecessors. Both leads are thoroughly unlikable, meaning you won’t particularly care who ruins whom financially.

The show jumps straight into proceedings—no preamble about their marriage and no “will-they-won’t-they” teasing about the divorce. The writing assumes you’ve seen the trailer and know the premise. By the end of episode one, every single narrative chess piece is in play.

Because legal proceedings begin so early, the middle episodes suffer from a slight lack of variety. The ping-pong match between firms becomes repetitive, and while realistic, deciding how many millions she deserves can feel like a chore. There are only so many times you can watch legal teams circle each other. Fortunately, War picks up quickly for a thoroughly bingeable two-part finale.

Strangely, despite the vast sums at stake, little is made of the characters’ professions. There is no exploration of celebrity culture or critique of the tech industry; instead, the show focuses on the pettiness of the legal system and the lengths lawyers go to prove a point. A dash of pop-culture satire wouldn’t have gone amiss to add extra flavour.

In fact, Carla and Morgan are the least interesting element of War. Both lack depth, and whenever the focus shifts to them, the narrative drags. Dominic West (The Wire) does what he can, stepping into the familiar shoes of a sleazy traitor, but Sienna Miller sadly fades into the background, hindered by a half-hearted characterisation. It’s never clear whether Carla is meant to be cold and distant or if that is simply Miller’s performance choice.

Shows of this nature live and die on their performances, and War boasts some of the finest talent on the British acting circuit, including Nick Mohammed (Ted Lasso), Celia Imrie, and Miles Jupp across its eight episodes.

War combines the glossy wit of an American series with a distinctly British sensibility and ensemble. With a second series already commissioned, the finale will certainly leave viewers talking and eager for more.

UK | 2026 | 8 EPISODES | 2.39:1 | COLOUR | ENGLISH

Cast & Crew

writer: George Kay.
director: Ben Taylor.
starring: Dominic West, Sienna Miller, Phoebe Fox, James McArdle, Pip Torrens, Nina Sosanya, Archie Renaux, Nick Mohammed, Celia Imrie, Shaheen Jafargholi, Akiya Henry & Honor Swinton Byrne.