Sky has commissioned comic horror Sky original drama, The Baby, from debut screenwriter Siân Robins-Grace (Kaos, Sex Education).

The Sky and HBO co-production is co-created by Robins-Grace and Lucy Gaymer (Gangs of London, Liar) and produced by SISTER and Proverbial Pictures.

The Baby which will air on Sky Atlantic and streaming service NOW TV is billed as a “funny, raw examination of motherhood as an institution: a set of unspoken rules that affect women differently depending on how they’re viewed by society. If you’re not scared by that, you should be.”

When 38 year-old Natasha is unexpectedly landed with a baby, her life of doing what she wants, when she wants, dramatically implodes. Controlling, manipulative and with violent powers, the baby twists Natasha’s life into a horror show. Where does it come from? What does it want? And what lengths will Natasha have to go to in order to get her life back?

Siân Robins-Grace and Lucy Gaymer said: “With The Baby we want to explore the powerful anxiety around the question of whether or not to have children. The ambivalence of not knowing, the bafflement at everyone else’s certainty and the suspicion that the whole thing is one millennia-long scam. We’re thrilled to be working with such a phenomenal team of producers to help us bring this weird baby into the world with HBO and Sky.”

Cameron Roach, Director of Drama, Sky Studios said: “The Baby is by turns dark, comedic, and horrifying. The vision that Siân and Lucy are bringing to life is truly unique.”

Amy Gravitt, EVP, HBO Programming commented: “Siân and Lucy’s exploration of motherhood is as funny and resonant as it is twisted, The Baby gives voice to all the women who just don’t know.  We’re thrilled to be partnering again with Jane Featherstone, Carolyn Strauss, and our friends at Sky.”

SISTER Team said: “We are so inspired by the horrific and hilarious vision that Siân and Lucy have for The Baby and fell in love with Siân’s script the moment we read it. Natasha and the baby are two rare beings who we can’t wait to bring to life.”

The eight-episode first season will be produced by SISTER and Proverbial Pictures and Executive Produced by Jane Featherstone (Chernobyl, GiriHaji), Carolyn Strauss (Chernobyl, Game of Thrones), Naomi de Pear (The Power, Flowers), Katie Carpenter (Landscapers, The Bisexual) and Siân Robins-Grace. Joining the female-led creative team as producer is Lucy Gaymer. The Baby is Robins-Grace’s screenwriting debut, following her work on critically-acclaimed hit Sex Education which she developed with Creator Laurie Nunn.

The Baby was commissioned for Sky by Zai Bennett, Sky UK’s Managing Director of Content and Cameron Roach, Director of Drama at Sky Studios, with Gabriel Silver, Senior Commissioning Editor at Sky Studios, as the commissioning editor. The series is commissioned for HBO by Casey Bloys and Amy Gravitt. The series is a co-production between Sky and HBO and will be filmed in the UK in 2021.