Black Doves season 2 cast: New and returning stars in Netflix thriller

Keira Knightley's tough-as-nails spy Helen Webb is back in action for Black Doves season 2 on Netflix, which adds some major names to its stellar ensemble cast.

The series follows the operations of a shady intelligence agency, which specialises in acquiring classified information to sell on to the highest bidder.

Helen ranks as one of their most high-profile agents, given that she's conveniently married the newly elected Prime Minister Wallace Webb (Andrew Buchan).

However, this status comes with intense pressure from all sides, including longtime handler Reed (Sarah Lancashire), who is keeping dangerous secrets of her own.

James Bond and Paddington icon Ben Whishaw completes the core trio as tortured assassin Sam, while Ambika Mod (One Day) and Neve Campbell (Scream) are among the new additions for season 2.

If you're excited to find out more, read on for a full re-introduction to the Black Doves cast as season 2 lands on Netflix later this week.

Black Doves cast: Full list of actors and characters

Here's an overview of the Black Doves season 2 cast – scroll on for more detailed profiles on each character and the actor playing them, including where you might have seen them before.

• Keira Knightley as Helen
• Ben Whishaw as Sam
• Sarah Lancashire as Reed
• Ella Lily Hyland as Williams
• Gabrielle Creevy as Eleanor
• Ambika Mod as Laila
• Andrew Buchan as Wallace
• Babou Ceesay as Mr Conteh
• Kathryn Hunter as Lenny
• Neve Campbell as Cecile
• Sam Riley as Patrick
• Ken Nwosu as Bill

Keira Knightley plays Helen

Who is Helen? Helen is an agent for a secret organisation called the Black Doves. She relays classified information to them obtained through her husband, Wallace, which is then sold to the highest bidder.

At various times, she has considered escaping her life of secrecy and betrayal, but exiting the spy game is far easier said than done. In season 2, Wallace has become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, meaning there's more pressure on her than ever to maintain her trusted position by his side.

What else has Keira Knightley been in? Knightley achieved worldwide stardom for her role as Elizabeth Swann in Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

She has since pivoted away from Hollywood blockbusters in favour of smaller, more esteemed dramas, such as Pride & Prejudice, Atonement, Anna Karenina and The Imitation Game. Knightley's early work includes Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Bend It Like Beckham and Love Actually.

Sarah Lancashire plays Reed

Who is Reed? Reed is Helen's handler at the Black Doves. An icy, calculating figure, it's unclear if she can entirely be trusted, but one thing is for sure – she won't suffer fools gladly. In season 2, ghosts from her past come back to haunt her.

"In meeting the young Elizabeth Reed, we learn the set of circumstances that leads our grown-up Reed to become the person she is," teased Lancashire.

"We get to understand the events that shaped her life and her character. We recognise, too, that Reed has carried a rather heavy load, the truth of which is unpalatable, and that to survive she has to invent and reinvent herself to protect herself from physical and psychological damage."

What else has Sarah Lancashire been in? Lancashire recently wrapped up a celebrated run as Catherine Cawood in the acclaimed BBC crime thriller Happy Valley.

She spent a two-season run as television chef Julia Child in a semi-fictional biographical series about her trailblazing career. Lancashire's other credits include Last Tango in Halifax, Talking Heads and The Accident.

Ben Whishaw plays Sam

Who is Sam? Sam is an assassin, who is close friends with Helen and a former employee of Reed. In season 1, we saw how the Black Doves spymaster tasked Sam with training Helen when she initially joined the organisation.

After some time apart, Helen and Sam's lives collide once again as both are on the cusp of descending into chaos.

"Sam has a rather troubled, romantic history which has got awfully tangled up with his professional life," said Whishaw. "So much so that he had to flee the country, but he returned because Helen needed him and he is now going through – to use Joe Barton's words – a personal malaise."

What else has Ben Whishaw been in? Whishaw played gadget whizz Q in Daniel Craig's James Bond films, debuting in Skyfall and reprising the role for Spectre and No Time to Die.

He also provides the voice of Paddington in the character's modern film trilogy as well as The Adventures of Paddington series. Other credits include This is Going to Hurt, Fargo season 4, A Very English Scandal and The Hour.

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Ambika Mod plays Laila

Who is Laila? Laila is a former Black Dove turned assassin, who rather suddenly appears in Helen's life at the start of season 2. They instantly butt heads due to their clashing personalities and approaches to their perilous work.

Mod explained: "She’s a character that's best not overthought. She’s loose, fun and playful so that’s what I tried to be. In the future, though, I think it would be really interesting to uncover her layers.

"Why is she like that? Where did she come from? Why is she so chill about what she does? There's something very nonchalant and scrappy about her and I would love to uncover that more."

What else has Ambika Mod been in? Mod broke out in the cast of BBC medical drama This Is Going to Hurt, making this a reunion for herself and Whishaw. Mod found even greater success as the co-lead of Netflix's One Day adaptation, where she starred opposite The White Lotus alum Leo Woodall.

Other credits include The Stolen Girl, Black Bag and I Hate Suzie.

Ella Lily Hyland plays Williams

Who is Williams? Williams is an assassin, who worked for crime boss Lenny in the first season. She has since forged a professional partnership with fellow trigger-woman Eleanor, and an unlikely friendship with Sam.

"She's in a really interesting spot because she is starting to realise that she cares about people and might not be completely apathetic," revealed Hyland. "So in the second season, she's on the next chapter of that journey and is surprising herself with all of the feelings that she has."

What else has Ella Lily Hyland been in? Hyland's breakthrough came opposite Aidan Turner in the Prime Video drama Fifteen-Love. Since then, she's appeared in Agatha Christie's Towards Zero, Disney+ hit A Thousand Blows and Irish comedy-thriller Tall Tales & Murder.

Gabrielle Creevy plays Eleanor

Who is Eleanor? Eleanor is Williams's partner in crime and a fellow assassin.

"When we see Eleanor and Williams for the first time in season 2, Sam is hiring them to do a job... All they want to know is how much money he is going to pay them," teased Creevy.

"They think they deserve a pay rise after how well they did before which is just classic. Should they get one? Absolutely, because not only are they good at their jobs they are good company. People need an Eleanor and Williams in their lives."

What else has Gabrielle Creevy been in? Last year, Creevy reunited with Black Doves creator Joe Barton for his Sky miniseries Amadeus, and partnered with Eve Myles for BBC thriller The Guest. Her other work includes In My Skin, The Pact, Three Women and Operation Mincemeat.

Andrew Buchan plays Wallace

Who is Wallace? Wallace is Helen's husband. The couple have been married for many years and have two young children together. In that time, he has remained blissfully unaware of her second life as a Black Dove – although the secret is becoming harder for Helen to conceal.

That's because, in season 2, Wallace has risen to the office of Prime Minister, resulting in a fresh round of security checks on all of his known associates.

"I think, with Wallace, I was very aware that I didn't want to make him a clone of the Prime Minister's past," said Buchan of his role. "I wanted to make him as real and relatable as I could."

What else has Andrew Buchan been in? Buchan is known for roles in Broadchurch, The Crown, Industry, COBRA and Carnival Row. This isn't his first politician role either, having portrayed former Health Secretary Matt Hancock in Richard Branagh's COVID-19 drama This England.

Babou Ceesay plays Mr Conteh

Who is Mr Conteh? Mr Conteh is a senior figure at the Black Doves, who is investigating Reed's recent conduct.

"I don't know if there's anyone above them in the organisation – Joe [Barton, writer] will let us know that in time! He is quite a dominant character, and he is very much vying for more power," said Ceesay.

What else has Babou Ceesay been in? Most recently, he played the unnerving Kumi Morrow in sci-fi horror Alien: Earth. Ceesay's other credits include We Hunt Together, Wolfe and Shardlake.

Neve Campbell plays Cecile Mason

Who is Cecile Mason? Cecile is the US defence envoy to the United Kingdom, who has been sent over in the run-up to a major peace summit. Suffice to say, she isn't shy about fighting for the President's interests in the halls of No. 10.

Campbell said: "I got so much about Cecile though from Joe Barton’s words - she's clearly
incredibly strong and wilful and there’s humour in that because she is also very stubborn.

"I created the idea that she probably worked in the military before she got her position in government and that's made her a very determined human being... I've certainly seen examples of her at the moment in our current government in the States. Naming no names!"

What else has Neve Campbell been in? Campbell is probably best known as Sidney Prescott in the long-running horror franchise Scream, having recently returned for its seventh entry.

She's also no stranger to hit Netflix shows, after bagging the roles of LeAnn Harvey in House of Cards and Maggie McPherson in The Lincoln Lawyer.

Sam Riley plays Patrick

Who is Patrick? Patrick is a menacing representative of a rival organisation to the Black Doves.

Riley explained: "His strengths are that he's very good at what he does – he's good with a gun and he's cool under pressure. As for weakness, it's potentially his fanaticism. Whether he is an anarchist or a nihilist, it endangers him."

What else has Sam Riley been in? You might recognise Riley from earlier work as Ian Curtis in music biopic Control, Diaval in Disney's Maleficent and its sequel, and Jack in Netflix's Rebecca (a remake of the Alfred Hitchcock classic).

Kathryn Hunter plays Lenny

Who is Lenny? Lenny is a gang boss, who has unfinished business with Sam.

What else has Kathryn Hunter been in? Hunter recently played Eedy Karn, the demanding mother of villain Syril Karn, in the first season of Star Wars drama Andor. She was also seen in Oscar winner Poor Things, while Grotesquerie, Megalopolis and The Tragedy of Macbeth are among her other credits.

Ken Nwosu plays Bill

Who is Bill? Bill is a senior government official and a close advisor to Wallace.

What else has Ken Nwosu been in? Nwosu has previously appeared in Disney Plus series Shardlake, ITV drama The Winter King and BBC dark comedy Rain Dogs.

Black Doves season 1 cast members

Andrew Koji plays Jason (season 1)

Who is Jason? Jason is a UK government official who Helen met through her husband's work, and ultimately began an extramarital affair with. They had hoped to build a new life together, but those plans were tragically cut short when he became the victim of a premeditated hit – the question is: why?

What else has Andrew Koji been in? Koji is an actor and martial artist, who has previously put his athletic skills to good use in projects like Warrior, Boy Kills World, Bullet Train and Snake Eyes. He has also appeared in Peaky Blinders and American Gods, while he will join the cast of Sky's Gangs of London in its upcoming season.

Omari Douglas plays Michael (season 1)

Who is Michael? Michael is Sam's ex-boyfriend. The pair had a warm and loving relationship, but it ended on bad terms – and Sam's sudden return to London stirs up emotions in both of them.

What else has Omari Douglas been in? After years spent working on stage, Douglas came to the attention of television fans in Russell T Davies's hard-hitting AIDS drama It's A Sin. He would reunite with the prolific screenwriter on ITV's Nolly, while other screen gigs include Billie Piper's I Hate Suzie Too and acclaimed romcom Rye Lane.

Paapa Essiedu plays Elmore Fitch (season 1)

Who is Elmore Fitch? Elmore is an agent on Helen's trail.

What else has Paapa Essiedu been in? Another repeat collaborator of Black Doves creator Joe Barton, Essiedu starred in his sci-fi thriller The Lazarus Project. Prior to that, he was known for I May Destroy You, Gangs of London and Anne Boleyn. Coming up: he dons Professor Snape's cloak for HBO's Harry Potter streaming series.

Adeel Akhtar plays Prime Minister Eaves (season 1)

Who is Prime Minister Eaves? As his title suggests, Eaves is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

What else has Adeel Akhtar been in? Akhtar earned praise for his performance in the second season of Showtrial on BBC One, while he earned a BAFTA Television Award in 2022 for his turn in Sherwood. Other notable credits include Netflix mega-hit Fool Me Once, fantasy drama Sweet Tooth, spy thriller Killing Eve and the Enola Holmes films.

Luther Ford plays Hector Newman (season 1)

Who is Hector? Hector is another organised crime boss, who has history with Sam.

What else has Luther Ford been in? Ford portrayed Prince Harry in the final season of The Crown.

Tracey Ullman plays Alex (season 1)

Who is Alex? Alex is a powerful figure in London.

What else has Tracey Ullman been in? Ullman is known for her work in the comedy space, with her self-titled '80s sketch show famously featuring the earliest misadventures of a chaotic family called The Simpsons. Her acting credits include Ally McBeal, Mrs America, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Into the Woods.

Finn Bennett plays Cole Atwood (season 1)

Who is Cole Atwood? Cole is an employee of the CIA.

What else has Finn Bennett been in? Bennett broke out as rookie police officer Peter Prior in HBO's True Detective: Night Country, and went on to co-star in Game of Thrones spin-off A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.

Black Doves is available to stream on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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