The Rights For an ‘Under the Skin’ TV Show Are Up For Bid
While you can claim that the sheer number of television shows based on movies is evidence of the ongoing creative bankruptcy in Hollywood, it’s hard to argue that a lot of very good TV shows lately have been based on or spun off from movies, including Westworld, Watchmen, Friday Night Lights, Parenthood, and others. Like everything else in pop culture, it all comes down to the creators and the execution.
So while there’s a chance this next film-to-TV adaptation could be disastrous, there’s also a chance it could be incredible. Deadline reports that multiple companies are currently bidding on the rights to make a TV spinoff of Under the Skin, Jonathan Glazer’s spooky sci-fi film from 2013 about an alien, played by Scarlett Johansson, who seduces and kidnaps men.
According to Deadline, the concept has been batted around for a while, but there have been various hold-ups, including the film’s director and producer, Jonathan Glazer and James Wilson, being busy with other projects...
Silver Reel — which financed Under The Skin alongside Film4, the BFI and Creative Scotland — has been sweet on the idea of making a TV spin-off for years, and has repeatedly attempted to get the project off the ground. A24, which is working with Glazer and Wilson on their next film, only entered the fray late last year. A decision on where the rights will end up is expected in the coming weeks.
Silver Reel is now bidding on the rights to the potential show along with A24. Glazer and Wilson role with the series “will need to be determined once the rights have a home.”
Don’t expect Johansson to show up no matter what this Under the Skin show evolves into, but if it does have Glazer and Wilson working on it in some creative capacity (Deadline says they could potentially be “curators” on the show, while the day-to-day is handled by other producers) it could absolutely be worth watching. Under the Skin remains one of the last decade’s most memorable sci-fi movies, and the concept seems perfect for a prestige TV series on some streaming service or cable channel.
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