Paul Verhoeven Will Direct a French-Language Series Based on The Novel BEL AMI
Paul Verhoeven, the director behind RoboCop, Total Recall, Basic Instinct, and Starship Troopers, is set to develop a French-language series based on Guy de Maupassant’s classic novel Bel Ami.
Verhoeven will serve as showrunner of the series and he will direct all eight episodes, which will be a contemporary adaptation of the novel set in the TV world. For those of you not familiar with the novel, it tells a scandalous tale of an opportunistic young man corrupted by the allure of power. It chronicles a journalist’s corrupt rise to power, becoming one of the most successful men in Paris by manipulating a series of wealthy women.
Here’s a description of the story it tells:
Young, attractive and very ambitious, George Duroy, known to his admirers as Bel-Ami, is offered a job as a journalist on La Vie francaise and soon makes a great success of his new career. But he also comes face to face with the realities of the corrupt society in which he lives - the sleazy colleagues, the manipulative mistresses, and wily financiers - and swiftly learns to become an arch-seducer, blackmailer and social climber in a world where love is only a means to an end.
Written when Maupassant was at the height of his powers, "Bel-Ami" is a novel of great frankness and cynicism, but it is also infused with the sheer joy of life - depicting the scenes and characters of Paris in the belle epoque with wit, sensitivity, and humanity. Douglas Parmee's translation captures all the vigour and vitality of Maupassant's novel. His introduction explores the similarities between Bel-Ami and Maupassant himself and demonstrates the skill with which the author depicts his large cast of characters and the French society of the Third Republic.
This certainly sounds like the kind of story that Verhoeven would love to bring to life. We’ve seen many of these elements in the film’s that he’s made.
The series is being written by Dutch screenwriter Gerard Soeteman, who previously collaborated with Verhoeven on features including Black Book and Turkish Delight. Bel Ami was previously adapted into a feature starring Robert Pattinson, Uma Thurman, and Kristin Scott Thomas back in 2012.
As of right now, there’s no word on where the series will air, but as a fan of Verhoeven’s past work, this is show I’d be interested in watching. The project is aiming to shoot summer 2021 in France.
Verhoeven’s latest project is titled Benedetta, which is an erotic feature about a 17th century nun who suffers from disturbing religious visions. The release of that film was pushed back to 2021.
Source: Deadline
