Stephen King Enters the Main Stage of Fantasy TV Shows
A horror writer’s fantasy epic A legend it was originally going to be a movie, but now it’s getting a 10-episode series.
JRR Tolkien and George RR Martin have an upcoming competition in the world of big-name TV adaptations: Stephen King’s 2022 bestseller A legendwhich was originally planned as a feature film, is now coming to the small screen courtesy of A24. Director Paul Greengrass (News of the World, Jason Bourne)who was involved in the original film project, is still on board, with JH Wyman (Fringe, Almost Human) joining as the showrunner for the 10-episode series.
Deadline has obtained an article on the news, reporting that Greengrass’ original script will be “expanded” by Greengrass and Wyman, and that Greengrass is “likely” to stay at the helm again. The reason A legend it didn’t work as a film, the trade said, that King’s 600-plus page novel was too long to be combined into one film. When Universal left, so did producer Peter Rice (Saturday night) and A24 decided to make a TV show instead.
The reformed master is known for his long books, of course—but he almost always works in the horror genre. A legend it is unusual because it relies heavily on fiction, although there are still some horror elements present. The book’s cover quote praises none other than Guillermo del Toro, calling it “a journey into a magical, terrifying world of wonder and horror.”
Here is the official description of the story: “Charlie Reade looks like a normal high school kid, he’s a baseball and football player, he’s an honor student. But you are carrying a lot of weight. His mother died in a tragic accident when he was seven, and grief drove his father to drink. Charlie learned to take care of himself—and his father. When Charlie is seventeen, he meets a dog named Radar and his elderly master, Howard Bowditch, who lives alone in a large house on top of a large hill, with a locked shed behind the house. Sometimes strange sounds come from it.
Charlie starts doing Mr. Bowditch works and loses his heart because of Radar. Then, when Bowditch dies, he leaves Charlie a tape that tells a story that no one could believe. What Bowditch knows, and has kept secret for the rest of his life, is that inside the shed is a portal to another world.”
So far there’s no word on which broadcaster or network will host the series, and it’s obviously too early to know anything about casting or when the premiere date will be. What do you think about a A legend series—and King’s work doing other adaptations and movements?
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