Hayley Atwell and Rupert Everett join the cast as Emily Atack says she loved playing sexy Sarah Stratton: 'I am her. I'm a flawed woman'

According to Disney+, Atwell, who recently appeared in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (2025), will portray Helen Gordon, Rupert Campbell-Black's (Alex Hassell) ex-wife and the mother of his two children, Marcus and Tabitha.

Rivals Season 2 has cast Hayley Atwell and Rupert Everett, with Atwell filling a pivotal role for two main characters.

RUPERT Everett and Hayley Atwell are to star in series two of the hit Disney+ show Rivals. Based on Dame Jilly Cooper’s novel of the same name, the series centres on a group of wealthy media types in the 1980s who are based in the Cotswolds.

Rivals series two starring Rupert Everett and Hayley Atwell is filming in Clevedon. Based on Dame Jilly Cooper’s novel of the same name, the series centres on a group of wealthy media types in the 1980s who are based in the Cotswolds.