Hugh Jackman will be behind the camera for a change in charge of an adaptation of the acclaimed science fiction novel The Overstory for Netflix.
The 52-year-old Logan star will be in good company, as he will executive produce the series with Game Of Thrones creators David Benioff and DB Weiss.
The new series will be the duo’s third show in their $ 250 million total deal with Netflix.
Behind the scenes: Hugh Jackman, 52, will produce an adaptation of the acclaimed science fiction novel The Overstory for Netflix, along with the creators of Game Of Thrones; seen in 2019 in London
According to Netflix, the Overstory series will be: ‘a sweeping and passionate work of activism and resistance that is also an impressive evocation of the natural world’.
“It tells the story of a world next to ours that is vast, interconnected, full of resources, magnificently inventive and almost invisible to us. A handful of different people learn to see this world and are drawn to the catastrophe that unfolds. ‘
The novel, written by Richard Powers, is concerned with the role of trees in our world and follows nine people who have very different connections to the huge flora.
Although the reviews for the novel were mixed, The Overstory won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and was selected for the 2018 Man Booker Prize.
Back: Game Of Thrones creators David Benioff (L) and DB Weiss will also be executive producers as part of their total $ 250 million deal with Netflix; seen together in January 2020 in LA
Critical success: The Overstory is a science fiction novel about nine humans and their connections to trees. He was selected for the 2018 Man Booker Award and won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
Richard Robbins, known for his work on Good Girls Revolt and 12 Monkeys, will executive produce the series alongside Benioff and Weiss, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Jackman shared his interest in the novel before joining the series during an episode of The Tim Ferris Show podcast in June 2020.
The X-Men actor revealed that he received a copy of the ex-senator Gary Hart’s book after playing it in The Front Runner 2018.
He called The Overstory ‘the most transformative piece of fiction I’ve read in a long time’, and said that it ‘completely reverses the way you see the world when you leave home’.
Big fan: Jackman spoke enthusiastically about The Overstory on The Tim Ferris Show podcast in June, calling it ‘the most transformative piece of fiction I’ve read in a long time’; seen in 2019 in NYC
The adaptation seems to be a good fit for Netflix as well, as CEO Reed Hastings also praised The Overstory while talking to The New York Times in September, calling it “a wonderful example of how a good narrative can help build understanding and empathy “, adding that it was, ‘Original and profound.’
Benioff and Weiss are coming out of their successful run with the Game Of Thrones series for HBO.
The fantasy series debuted in 2011 with rave reviews and became a record hit for the premium network, while winning more Primetime Emmy Awards than any other show.
However, critics’ adoration dropped in the later seasons, and many fans and critics were upset about the final season, which they felt was rushed.
Culture touchstone: Benioff and Weiss were acclaimed for their work on HBO’s hugely successful Game Of Thrones, through criticism that fell in later seasons and some fans revolted against the final episodes
Benioff and Weiss were prolific in a short time on Netflix.
They are already working on an adaptation of the Chinese science fiction novel The Three-Body Problem and its sequels.
They are collaborating on this adaptation with Alexander Woo, who created and acted as a showrunner for the second season of AMC’s The Terror.
They will also produce a dramatic half-hour comedy starring Sandra Oh called The Chair.
The series will have as showrunner actress Amanda Peet, married to Benioff.
Staying busy: The duo already has a series based on the Chinese science fiction series The Three-Body Problem in progress, as well as a half-hour drama starring Sandra Oh called The Chair