The New Cast & Characters of Season 2
World on Fire Season 2 adds four new characters to its stellar international cast. Learn all about the new characters, including the actors who portray them, where you’ve seen the new cast before, and a fascinating fact about each.
- 1.
Ahad Raza Mir is Rajib
The Character: Rajib is an Indian officer in the British Army. As Mir describes him, “He’s fearless and determined. He sticks to the rules—a total military man.” Rajib is also a very moral character. “I think he’s very clear in his head about what is the right thing to do.”
Where You’ve Seen Him: Pakistani-born Canadian actor Mir has been on BBC, Netflix, and the Canadian stage. He played Arjun Batra in 2022’s Resident Evil and is currently reprising the role of Hamlet at Brampton’s Rose Theatre in Ontario.
Fascinating Fact: Mir has had a strong career on Pakistani television, achieving “Bieber-fever levels of adoration,” according to Toronto Life magazine. He’s a paparazzi target there, contributing to his 3M Instagram followers. “Everyone knows Bollywood for its movies. Pakistan is known for long-form television. I was in a 26-episode series that changed my life almost overnight. The show is called Yakeen Ka Saafar,” says Mir. “Sort of similar to Grey’s Anatomy, but with a lot more family drama.”
- 2.
Gregg Sulkin is David
The Character: David is a rather dashing Royal Air Force fighter pilot. The character is “brave but reckless,” says Sulkin. David is affable, a friend to all. “He keeps everyone’s morale up during missions, when it’s a matter of life and death.”
Where You’ve Seen Him: Sulkin may be best known for the American fantasy teen sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place, which aired on the Disney Channel between 2007-2012. He played Mason Greyback, the werewolf boyfriend to Selena Gomez’s wizard character. Sulkin has appeared in other TV miniseries including Runaways, Faking It, and Pretty Little Liars.
Fascinating Fact: World on Fire won’t be Sulkin’s only foray into WW2 dramas. He’s starring in Netflix’s upcoming Six Triple Eight, written and directed by Tyler Perry. The film Also stars Kerry Washington, Oprah Winfrey, Sam Waterston, and Susan Sarandon, among others. It tells the true story of the only all-Black female battalion to serve in Europe during the war.
- 3.
Mark Bonnar is Sir James Danemere
The Character: Sir James is an MI5 intelligence operative. “His reasons for being in the Chase family household are ostensibly to carry out his work … gathering information about potential spies,” says Bonnar. He’s skilled at turning people and events to his advantage, but we like the charming Danemere. “He’s not a bad person by any stretch of the imagination.”
Where You’ve Seen Him: MASTERPIECE viewers may recognize Bonnar from his roles as the unscrupulous Max McCall in Guilt, or traumatized lawyer Colin Osborne in Season 2 of Unforgotten. He’s had a multi-decade career with leads in crime dramas like Shetland and Line of Duty, as well as the comedy Catastrophe.
Fascinating Fact: Bonnar’s paternal grandfather fled Poland as WW2 began. “The story goes that his brother was put in a concentration camp and my grandad and his mate decided to up sticks and walk to Yugoslavia,” he tells The Guardian (UK). As far as Bonnar knows, the two men got on a boat to Southampton, his grandfather later joining the RAF.
- 4.
Miriam Schiweck is Marga
The Character: Sixteen-year-old Marga is an idealistic member of the Hitler Youth girls’ wing. “Everything she does is because she has been taught that she has to protect the ‘Aryan’ race,” says Schiweck. “Marga’s wrapped up in this terrible ideology and doesn’t actually know it or realize what she signed up to.”
Where You’ve Seen Her: Schiweck only started to study acting in 2021. She’s just recently gained experience in short and feature films, including 2022’s Servus Papa (See You in Hell) and a lead role in the German psychological horror movie, Time of Moulting.
Fascinating Fact: In World on Fire Schiweck plays a young woman sought after by the SS for her white skin and blonde hair, but “I [had] to wear a wig as I’m not really blonde,” she tells MASTERPIECE.
