CHERNOBYL Director Johan Renck to Direct a Series Adaptation of THE MAGUS
The director of HBO’s incredibly well-made series Chernobyl, Johan Renck, is in talks to direct a series adaptation of John Fowles’s famously cryptic cult novel The Magus.
The news was teased by Renck when he posted a picture of the novel’s cover on social media alongside the words, “Something is brewing.” The news that he in talks to direct the series was then confirmed by Variety. It will be produced by 1917 production house Neal Street Productions, headed by producer Pippa Harris and filmmaker Sam Mendes. Harris said that she “couldn’t think of anyone better to shepherd John Fowles’ extraordinary book to the screen.”
The Magus was published in 1966, and the story is set on a Greek island, “where Englishman Nicholas Urfe, a young schoolteacher, finds himself embroiled in the mindgames of the island’s enigmatic owner.” Here’s the description of the book:
Filled with shocks and chilling surprises, The Magus is a masterwork of contemporary literature. In it, a young Englishman, Nicholas Urfe, accepts a teaching position on a Greek island where his friendship with the owner of the islands most magnificent estate leads him into a nightmare. As reality and fantasy are deliberately confused by staged deaths, sensual encounters, and terrifying violence, Urfe becomes a desperate man fighting for his sanity and his life.
A work rich with symbols, conundrums and labrinthine twists of event, The Magus is as thought-provoking as it is entertaining, a work that ranks with the best novels of modern times.
Tom Edge has been hired to write the series. He’s previously worked on Judy with Renée Zellweger and The Crown.
The book was previously adapted into a movie by Fowles in the late 1960s, and that starred Anthony Quinn, Michael Caine and Candice Bergen.