ABC 2027 Upfront: Help Me! begins filming with Kate Box and Sarah Peirse — Production has started in Sydney on a darkly comic crime thriller about an estranged mother and daughter who become unlikely investigators.
Help Me! stars Kate Box (Deadloch, Jimpa) and Sarah Peirse (Treasure & Dirt, The Twelve), with Tilda Cobham-Hervey (Apple Cider Vinegar, Young Woman and the Sea) and Jai Courtney (Dangerous Animals, Dutton Ranch) also joining the cast.
The new series forms part of the broadcaster’s wider ABC 2027 Upfront slate. It will air on ABC TV and stream on ABC iview in 2027, although an exact premiere date has not yet been announced.
What is Help Me! about?
Box plays Katherine Ivey, a New York journalist whose career and personal life have imploded. She returns to Sydney for the funeral of her wealthy stepfather and an uneasy reunion with her estranged, larger-than-life mother, Barb Nelson, played by Peirse.
The pair’s awkward attempt to rebuild a normal relationship is interrupted at a cafe. A terrified woman approaches their table and secretly leaves a note with two words written in lipstick: HELP ME!
Police dismiss the incident, but Katherine and Barb refuse to let it go. Their determination to find the woman and bring her to safety launches the mother and daughter into an unpredictable crime story.
ABC Head of Scripted Rachel Okine said Sarah Lambert’s concept made an immediate impression.
From the formidable mind of Sarah Lambert, Help Me! was a concept that immediately grabbed us, with stellar scripts and characters that leaped off the page. Audiences are going to be taken on a dynamic, hilarious and very unexpected ride. We couldn’t be happier with the creative powerhouses and top notch cast that this team has assembled.
Rachel Okine, ABC Head of Scripted
A crime thriller driven by women and female rage
Help Me! is the first co-production between Lantern Pictures and Fremantle. Series creator and Lantern Pictures co-founder Sarah Lambert and Fremantle Australia Head of Scripted Carly Heaton said the story combines comedy, crime and the experience of becoming less visible with age.
Help Me! marks the first co-production between Lantern Pictures and Fremantle. It’s a darkly funny, bold and original drama about the invisibility that comes with age and is a love letter to women with a healthy dose of female rage. We love partnering with the ABC and have assembled an extraordinary group of talented and funny people in front of and behind the camera. The material brings a real sense of anarchic joy, creative ambition, and mischief. We’re so excited to bring Help Me! to life for audiences around Australia and the world.
Sarah Lambert and Carly Heaton
Screen Australia Director of Narrative Content Louise Gough said the mother-daughter relationship gives the crime plot its emotional centre.
Led by gutsy females in front of and behind the camera, Help Me! is a darkly funny, propulsive series with real heart and great bite. Lantern Pictures have brought together an exceptional team to tell a gripping crime story anchored by the complexities of mother-daughter dynamics. With equal parts vulnerability and trademark Australian humour, audiences here and around the world will find plenty to connect with in Help Me!.
Louise Gough, Screen Australia Director of Narrative Content
Help Me! production and creative team
The series is a Lantern Pictures and Fremantle production for the ABC. The ABC and Screen Australia provide major production investment, in association with Screen NSW through the Made in NSW Fund. Screen NSW also supports post-production, digital work and visual effects, while Fremantle handles international sales.
Lambert created the series and writes alongside Kirsty Fisher, Kim Wilson and Heidi Arena. Bree-Anne Sykes produces, while Fadia Abboud directs.
Sarah Lambert, Carly Heaton, Jane Manning and Andrew Lambert serve as executive producers. Rebecca Anderson and Rachel Okine are the ABC executive producers.
Screen NSW Executive Director Kylie Munnich said the Sydney-based production would support local practitioners as two NSW companies joined forces.
Screen NSW is thrilled to see two exceptional NSW production companies, Lantern Pictures and Fremantle Australia, join forces to bring the bold, dark comedic crime thriller Help Me! to the screen. With a standout cast and an impressive creative team behind the camera, the production promises a compelling story rich with heart, humanity and intrigue. We are pleased that Help Me! will call Sydney home, creating opportunities for NSW cast, crew and screen practitioners while showcasing the depth of local talent to audiences in Australia and around the world.
Kylie Munnich, Screen NSW Executive Director
When will Help Me! premiere?
Help Me! will premiere on ABC TV and ABC iview during 2027. The broadcaster is yet to confirm the launch date, timeslot or episode release pattern.
For more TV Central ABC news, head here, and visit ABC iview to explore dramas currently available to stream.