Asif Kapadia is set to complete the final chapter of the series, which has long been regarded as a landmark and groundbreaking British television documentary.
The “Up” film series began in 1964 with “7 Up,” which chronicled the lives of 10 British boys and four girls, who were all seven years old at the time. The cameras then revisited the group every seven years, documenting their journey from childhood to teens to adulthood, through careers, marriage, divorce, parenthood, bereavement, and more.
Nine episodes have been produced so far, with renowned director Michael Apted directing all but the first episode. Following Apted’s death in 2021, Oscar-winning documentarian Kapadia, known for his work on Amy, Senna and Diego Maradona, has taken over the reins of ITV’s final two-part series, 70 Up, which aired all but one episode in 1988. According to the description, the film follows the participants as pensioners and retirees and “reflects on their triumphs, trials and tribulations, and what happened to their hopes and dreams.”
“In 2014, I named the ‘Up’ series as my favorite documentary of all time. Who knew that 20 years later, I would have the incredible honor and privilege of being asked to direct the legendary documentary series ’70 Up’,” Kapadia said. “I love this show! I first watched it as a child growing up in East London with my parents and siblings, and then all my adult life.”
Kapadia said he was lucky enough to meet Apted several times, the first time being when he was interviewed about “Sena.”
“He liked that I directed dramas and documentaries like he did,” he said. “Directing 70 Up was a dream project for me, the ultimate portrait of a human life, and working with our incredible editors Andrew Hulme and Patrick Saxer, we took on the challenge of cutting hours upon hours of archival material shot over decades, while also looking at the essence of documentary filmmaking itself. I hope audiences feel that my team and I have done justice to this epic series in its final chapter.”
In addition to Kapadia and his producer George Chigner, the cast will also include executive producer Helen Huston and Claire Lewis, who has carefully managed and produced the cast’s stories since 28 Up. The series is scheduled to air in late 2026.
70 Up was commissioned by Sue Murphy, Head of Commissioning, Factual Entertainment, ITV, and Joe Clinton-Davies, Controller, Factual ITV. Produced by MultiStory Media, part of ITV Studios, in association with Lafcadia Productions. ITV Studios will also be responsible for worldwide distribution, excluding North America.
