Freida Pinto Boards Idris Elba's Showtime Series GUERRILLA

A couple of months ago, Showtime announced that actor Idris Elba was teaming up with 12 Years a Slave and American Crime writer John Ridley for a six-episode limited series called Guerrilla. Now we have some more information about the series, including one of its two major stars: Slumdog Millionaire actress Freida Pinto has been cast as the female lead.

Pinto will play the role of “Jas Mitra,” a passionate and politically driven individual. As a member of a newly-formed radical underground cell, “Jas” helps liberate a charismatic convict from prison in an effort to lead the street fight against social injustice in 1971 London. GUERRILLA is a love story set against the backdrop of one of the most politically explosive times in U.K. history. It tells the story of “Jas” and “Marcus,” whose relationship and values are tested when they form a radical underground cell. Their ultimate target becomes the Black Power Desk, a true-life, secretive counter-intelligence unit within Special Branch dedicated to crushing all forms of black activism. Whilst the series is set against a background of social and political activism, at its heart GUERRILLA is about a relationship under pressure, and the reality that for any couple there comes a point when the choices they make have real and lasting consequences.

Elba is co-starring in the series, but he won't play Pinta's romantic partner — that role, "Marcus," has yet to be cast. This sounds like a fascinating series with some obvious parallels to what's happening in America right now, and I feel like Pinto is a straight-up movie star; I'm hoping this will be enough of a showcase for her to be able to score some coveted roles down the road.

Ridley will write the majority of the show's episodes and direct the first two and the finale, while Luther director Sam Miller will step in to direct the other episodes. Filming begins in London this summer for a presumed release sometime in 2017.