Anthony Mackie thought Jamie Dornan would be ‘perfect guy’ for heist series

Anthony Mackie has said he thought Jamie Dornan would be the “perfect” addition to his latest project and suggested him for the role.

The pair star in upcoming heist series 12 12 12, which follows three different timelines surrounding a billion-dollar bank robbery committed by American career criminal Paul Galvin, played by Dornan.

Across eight episodes, Galvin embarks on a high-stakes game of cat and mouse across Europe with disgraced FBI agent Jack Strickland, played by US actor Mackie.

Jamie Dornan previously worked with Anthony Mackie on 2019 sci-fi film Synchronic (Liam McBurney/PA)

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Mackie, who is an executive producer on the Apple TV series, spoke to the Press Association about why he suggested Dornan for the project.

“Paul Galvin is a very interesting character,” the 48-year-old said.

“He’s intricate because he’s in a world that he’s trying to back out of and become a normal human being.

“There’s something to be said about the guy who just wants to be normal.

“There’s a certain level of humbleness, and there’s a certain level of humanity that goes into that.”

Mackie, who worked with the Northern Irish actor on 2019 sci-fi film Synchronic, continued: “I know Jamie’s work pretty well.

“I’ve known him long enough where, when I thought about this character, I wanted people to like him.

“I wanted people to want him to win, and I thought (Dornan) was perfect for that.

“I think he’s every guy’s guy. He’s the guy you want to have a beer with, not the guy you want to beat up.

“I thought he was the perfect guy for it, and with the show now, I’m glad to see I was right.”

The series was inspired by an FBI manual detailing how to plan the perfect heist, and unfolds across the 12 months of planning, the 12 hours of the heist, and the 12 days after it.

Anthony Mackie helped build his character ‘from the boots up’ (Ian West/PA)

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It was created by Jim Keeble and Dudi Appleton, who were executive producers on the series alongside Mackie and Dornan, among others.

Keeble told PA: “Particularly Anthony, I remember a few good conversations very early on.

“He talked about his own journey through to the position he is now and how hard that was in places.

“He connected with Jack – being one of very few black FBI officers in his organisation.