Industry is a financial thriller drama television series created by former investment bankers Mickey Down and Konrad Kay, and co-produced by BBC Two in the United Kingdom and HBO in the United States. The show follows the personal and professional lives of a group of young graduates who join Pierpoint & Co, a prestigious investment bank in London; later series expand the scope of the narrative to encompass the wider UK financial sector and its governing bodies. It features an ensemble cast led by Myha'la, Marisa Abela and Ken Leung. Additional leading roles are played by Harry Lawtey and David Jonsson in earlier series and Sagar Radia and Kit Harington in later installments.
Industry premiered on 9 November 2020 on HBO in the United States, and on the next day on BBC Two in the United Kingdom. Three further eight-episode series have been released in 2022, 2024, and 2026. It has been renewed for a fifth and final series. Industry has been praised throughout its run for its writing, performances, direction, and its accurate portrayal of the banking sector, with the third and fourth series in particular receiving widespread acclaim.
Contents
Cast and characters
Marisa Abela as Yasmin Kara-Hanani, an ambitious graduate from a wealthy background, initially assigned to the Foreign Exchange Sales (FX) desk at Pierpoint
Priyanga Burford as Sara Dhadwal (series 1), the President of Pierpoint London
Mark Dexter as Hilary Wyndham (series 1–2, 4), managing director (MD) of FX at Pierpoint
Myha'la as Harper Stern, an underestimated, intelligent, and talented young woman from Binghamton, New York, initially assigned to the Cross Product Sales (CPS) desk at Pierpoint
David Jonsson as Augustus "Gus" Sackey (series 1–2), an openly gay graduate of literae humaniores at Eton and Oxford, initially assigned to the Investment Banking Division (IBD) desk at Pierpoint, then the CPS desk
Harry Lawtey as Robert Spearing (series 1–3), a graduate of Oxford from a working-class Welsh background, assigned to the CPS desk at Pierpoint
Ben Lloyd-Hughes as Greg Grayson (series 1 and 3), a Vice President (VP) at the CPS desk
Conor MacNeill as Kenny Kilbane, a VP at the FX desk at Pierpoint and Yasmin's line manager
Freya Mavor as Daria Greenock (series 1; guest series 2–3), a VP at the CPS desk at Pierpoint and Harper's line manager
Derek Riddell as Clement Cowan (series 1), CPS VP and Robert's manager, who struggles with heroin addiction
Nabhaan Rizwan as Hari Dhar (series 1), a graduate of a state school from an Urdu-speaking immigrant family, assigned to the IBD desk at Pierpoint
Episodes
Production
In November 2017, it was announced that HBO had put the series into development, with Mickey Down and Konrad Kay set to write the series with Jane Tranter set to serve as an executive producer, under the banner of her Bad Wolf British production company. Tranter, having taken interest in exploring why young graduates continued "flocking in their hordes" towards finance professions in the City of London after the 2008 financial crisis, secured funding from HBO for a "young and sexy" series set in the world of investment banking. A colleague introduced her to Down and Kay, themselves former investment bankers whom Tranter eventually hired to write the pilot.
In June 2019, it was announced that HBO had greenlit the series, with Lena Dunham set to direct the pilot. Principal photography began in June 2019, in Cardiff, Wales. In December 2019, it was announced that Myha'la Herrold, Marisa Abela, Harry Lawtey, David Jonsson, Nabhaan Rizwan, Freya Mavor, Will Tudor, Conor MacNeill and Ken Leung had joined the cast of the series, with Tinge Krishnan, Ed Lilly and Mary Nighy set to serve as directors, and Sam H. Freeman and Kate Verghese to serve as writers alongside Down and Kay.
In December 2020, HBO renewed the series for a second series. In July 2021, Alex Alomar Akpobome and Adam Levy were cast as new series regulars, while Indy Lewis, who guest starred in the first series, was promoted to a series regular for the second series. The second series filming wrapped on December 8, 2021. In March 2022, Jay Duplass, Sonny Poon Tip, and Katrine De Candole were cast as new series regulars for the second series.
In October 2022, HBO renewed the series for a third series. Production was not suspended amidst the WGA and SAG strikes due to the series' talent working under the UK-based union Equity. In April 2023, Kit Harington and Sarah Goldberg were cast for the third series. In May 2024, Miriam Petche, Andrew Havill, Roger Barclay, Fady Elsayed, and Fiona Button were added to the third series. Joseph Charlton, Azam Mahmood, Ally Israelson and Ava Wong Davies were added to the writer's room and served as consulting producers on the season.
In September 2024, HBO renewed the series for a fourth series. In February 2025, it was announced that Lawtey exited after the third series due to scheduling conflicts. In the same month, Max Minghella joined the fourth series. In March 2025, Kiernan Shipka, Jack Farthing, Toheeb Jimoh, Amy James-Kelly, Claire Forlani, Kal Penn and Charlie Heaton were cast for the fourth series. The fourth season began filming on March 24, 2025, and wrapped on August 1, 2025.
Release
The series premiered on 9 November 2020 on HBO and HBO Max in the United States. In the United Kingdom, it premiered 10 November 2020 on BBC. The second series premiered on 1 August 2022 on HBO and premiered on BBC One on 27 September 2022. The third series premiered on 11 August 2024 on HBO. The fourth series premiered on 11 January 2026 on HBO.
Reception
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the first series holds an approval rating of 76% with an average rating of 7.7/10, based on 38 reviews. The website's critics consensus states, "Though Industry's social critiques tend toward the superficial, sharp writing and an excellent ensemble make it easy to enjoy its soapy workplace drama anyway." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 69 out of 100 based on 17 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
The second series has a 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Finessing complicated financial jargon into scathing repartee, Industry's stock is way up in this superlative sophomore series full of frustrated ambitions and tested loyalties." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 82 out of 100 based on nine reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Vanity Fair described the series as the "missing link" between Succession and Euphoria.
The third series holds a 98% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 44 reviews, with an average rating of 8.8/10. The website's critics consensus states, "Finding cunning and surprising new angles to play in the Faustian rat race, Industry's ruthless third season is its best yet." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 86 out of 100 based on 19 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".
The fourth series has a 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 51 reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Betting on its own adaptability after resetting the board and analyzing new market forces, Industry yields a handsome payout with this sterling fourth season." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 88 out of 100 based on 17 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". The Guardian described the fourth season as "truly twisted, top-tier television", highlighting it as a strong example of the series further expanding its narrative ambition and thematic scope.
Accolades
The third season of Industry was named as part of various publications' year end list of best television series of 2024. Despite acclaim from critics and audiences, many have noted the show's omission from nominations in acting (particularly of Myha'la, Abela, Leung and Harington), writing and series at the Primetime Emmy Awards. CT Jones of Rolling Stone described Industry receiving zero nominations for their fourth season at the Emmys in 2026 as "a snub we'll look back on for years to come", whilst Chris O'Falt of IndieWire likened the exclusion as a result of the series unfitting what is considered to a traditional awards season model program and criticised HBO's inability to campaign the series as "prestige TV" despite the network's reputation for high quality productions.