Epix has given a series order to a murder thriller based on the 2012 novel “The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair.” The drama from MGM Television is set to star Patrick Dempsey, Damon Wayans Jr. and Virginia Madsen.
Lyn Greene and Richard Levine penned the pilot and several episodes. Jean-Jacques Annaud (“Seven Years in Tibet”) did an adaptation of Joel Dicker’s novel and will direct all 10 episodes of the limited series. Production is underway in Montreal. Eagle Pictures and Barbary Films are producing with MGM.
Dempsey will star as the title character, a literary icon who is indicted for murder after a teenage girl’s body is found buried on his property in Maine. Wayans plays the detective investigating the case. Madsen plays the owner of a local diner who discovers a secret about Quebert.
Annaud, Greene, Levine, Eagle Pictures’ Tarak Ben Ammar, and Barbary Films’ Fabio Conversi are exec producers.
“Joel Dicker’s exquisite thriller has captivated a worldwide audience with its complicated tale of love and lies. I am thrilled that this first class ensemble cast led by Patrick Dempsey and the incomparable director Jean-Jacques Annaud, get to bring provocative page-turner to life,” said Steve Stark, MGM’s president of television production and development.
“Harry Quebert Affair” is another example of MGM’s investment in original programming for Epix now that it has taken full ownership of the premium cabler, which was previously a joint venture of MGM, Paramount Pictures and Lionsgate. On Sunday, Epix launched its series adaptation of the 1993 MGM movie “Get Shorty.”
“Harry Quebert Affair” marks Annaud’s TV directing debut.
“It is a rich and nuanced novel set in a small New-England town and has all the elements for a classic mystery,” Annaud said. “Having MGM, Tarak and Fabio as my partners has given me the ability to assemble a formidable cast and a talented crew. Their enthusiasm for ‘Harry Quebert’ is equal to my own,” said Annaud.
Source: Variety
