Sam Heughan to Star Alongside Viola Davis in New Thriller "Ascent" for Paramount+

Created by John Logan and Produced by Paramount Television Studios, Ascent is Set to Begin Production in Los Angeles in 2027

PC: Randall Slavin

OCTOBER 22, 2026 - It was announced today that Sam Heughan (Outlander, The Couple Next Door) will star alongside Emmy(R), Grammy(R), Oscar(R) and Tony(R) Award-winning actress and executive producer Viola Davis in Ascent, a new thriller for Paramount+.

Sam Heughan will play "Conal," one of Ascent Ventures top agents. A lethally charming and natural chameleon, Conal uses social cunning and ruthlessness to get the job done, and he always gets a thrill out of completing a mission.

Ascent is a character-driven thriller set in the dangerous world of global corporate crisis and damage control. Davis will play "Catriona," an elite corporate fixer, who must weaponize the ruthless skills that have made her indispensable to billion-dollar clients when her estranged daughter is in danger.

Produced by Paramount Television Studios, Ascent is created by Tony Award winner and three-time Oscar(R) nominee John Logan (Skyfall, Gladiator, Michael, Penny Dreadful), who will serve as showrunner and executive producer alongside executive producers Michael Aguilar (Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, Kidding, The Departed), and Viola Davis & Julius Tennon for JuVee Productions.

The series will premiere globally exclusively on Paramount+, with production slated to begin in Los Angeles in 2027.

Sam Heughan Bio: Sam Heughan is best known for his role as actor and producer in the hit series Outlander, which just aired its eighth and final season and earned him BAFTA Scotland and Critics' Choice Award nominations. On television he has also been seen in The Couple Next Door, Men in Kilts: A Road Trip with Sam and Graham, River City, Island at War, The Wild West, and Party Animals. He will next appear in the political thriller Embassy, alongside J.K. Simmons and Anna Kendrick.

In film, Heughan most recently starred in Love Again, with Priyanka Chopra and Celine Dion, and has also been in The Spy Who Dumped me, with Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon, Bloodshot,with Vin Diesel, and SAS: Red Notice with Ruby Rose and Andy Serkis.

Heughan received rave reviews playing the titular role of "Macbeth" at the Royal Shakespeare company last year. Outside of acting, Heughan is also a 3-times New York Times bestselling author, the founder of an award-winning spirit brand called The Sassenach, and creator of My Peak Challenge, a wellness brand that helps people live a healthy lifestyle while raising money for charity.

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