‘The Taking of Pelham 123’ Headlines LEGEND’s October Action Line-Up

John Travolta, Denzel Washington, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Scott Adkins are among the names taking over LEGEND this October, with the channel unveiling a month of action, crime and science-fiction premieres built around cult favourites and modern genre hits.

Tony Scott’s The Taking of Pelham 123 is one of the headline additions, making its LEGEND debut on Monday 19 October. The 2009 thriller stars Washington as Walter Garber, a New York subway dispatcher drawn into a battle of wits with Travolta’s Ryder after a gang hijacks a train and demands a $10 million ransom.

The month gets underway on 5 October with Steven Seagal thriller The Foreigner. Seagal plays former deep-cover operative Jonathan Cold, who is hired to transport a mysterious package across Europe before becoming caught up in political corruption, double-crosses and murder.

Scott Adkins follows on 9 October with the channel premiere of Accident Man. The 2018 martial arts thriller casts Adkins as Mike Fallon, a professional killer whose speciality is making assassinations look like accidents. When his former girlfriend is murdered, Fallon turns his attention towards his own colleagues in an attempt to uncover who was responsible.

Seagal returns on 12 October with Black Dawn, reprising his role as Jonathan Cold in a story involving arms dealers, nuclear components and a terrorist plot targeting Los Angeles.

Jean-Claude Van Damme takes over the schedule on 15 October with Kill ’Em All. The film finds his character Philip recovering in hospital after a shootout when an armed cartel storms the building and begins hunting him through its corridors.

Another Seagal title arrives on 23 October with Mercenary: Absolution, which pairs him with Vinnie Jones. Seagal plays a contract killer whose latest assignment becomes complicated after he encounters a woman fleeing a mob boss with political connections.

October’s premieres then move into science fiction with Neill Blomkamp’s Elysium on 26 October. Matt Damon stars as Max, a factory worker living on an overcrowded Earth in 2154, while Jodie Foster plays the uncompromising Secretary of Defence protecting the wealthy population of the orbiting space habitat Elysium.

The collection gives LEGEND a month weighted heavily towards recognisable action stars, while also stretching from urban thrillers and martial arts into dystopian science fiction.

The Foreigner begins LEGEND’s October premieres on Monday 5 October at 9pm, with Accident Man, Black Dawn, Kill ’Em All, The Taking of Pelham 123, Mercenary: Absolution and Elysium following throughout the month. LEGEND is available on Sky 148, Virgin Media 149, Freeview 41, Freesat 137 and Freely 38.