Is The Jackal Good At Retirement Planning?

The new British TV series The Jackal on Peacock, starring Eddie Redmayne, offers a compelling and unsettling journey into the life of a paid assassin. It’s a strange ride: you spend so much time with The Jackal, you find yourself rooting for him, even as he, you know, kills people, many who are innocent of any wrong doing. You are also rooting for a smooth retirement and some good retirement planning. The end of Episode 7 is a cliffhanger, leaving me anxious. I’m counting down the days until Episode 8, which will air on Thursday, Dec. 5.

You might think The Jackal’s principal problem is the one staring him in the face: he didn’t kill his target. Worse, he doesn’t know who shot the billionaire, and he’s almost certainly not getting the $80 million remainder of his $100 million payout. But you’d be wrong. The real issue—one that’s dogged him for all seven episodes—is his retirement planning.