Back in 2010, director Gareth Edwards arrived on the scene with his indie sci-fi film Monsters. The film featured impressive visual effects completed by the director himself and an economical story that made great use of an intriguing concept without breaking the bank. It even landed Edwards a BAFTA nomination for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer, and it’s largely considered to be the reason he ended up directing the reboot of Godzilla in 2016.
Monsters has already been given a sequel called Monsters: Dark Continent, but it wasn’t nearly as celebrated as the original, mainly because it didn’t come from director Gareth Edwards and merely took place in the same universe. Now the world of Monsters will expand even more with a TV series in the works.
Deadline has word of the Monsters TV series in the works at Vertigo Films with the intention to air on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom, but producers are hoping to land a major partner in the United States, and they’re already in talks with the likes of Netflix and Amazon to send it across the pond.
For those who maybe haven’t seen Monsters, the compelling original film followed an American photojournalist (Scoot McNairy), who is tasked with escorting his employer’s daughter (Whitney Able), back to the United by crossing an infected zone full of strange creatures in Mexico. Neither of the characters returned for the movie sequel, which opted to follow a new story set in the same world.
There was once discussion of a Monsters TV series several years ago that Gareth Edwards wasn’t going to be involved with, but it never came to fruition. At the time, there were no story details known about the potential series, and we’re in the same boat for this new attempt as well. The good news is that Edwards is reportedly “likely to be involved behind the scenes with his full involvement determined when the project has been fully greenlit.” So he may end up serving as a consultant on the project or something like that.
Ronan Bennett, creator of the British crime series Top Boy, is set as showrunner for the series with Daniel Fajemisin-Duncan and Marlon Smith (the duo behind the UK miniseries Run) providing the script. The writers also recently sold an original sci-fi pitch called Red Star to Warner Bros. Pictures, so here’s hoping they can utilize the rich world created by Gareth Edwards to make an engaging television series worth importing from the United Kingdom.
TV shows based on movies don’t always bring the kind of success their predecessors found on the big screen. But since Monsters wasn’t a blockbuster spectacle with a huge fanbase to satisfy, there’s a chance the series adaptation will be able to thrive on its own without being a disappointment. It may even be able to improve upon Edwards original movie. We’ll find out whenever/if the series makes it to the United States as development continues.
The post Gareth Edwards’ ‘Monsters’ Is Becoming a TV Series appeared first on /Film.
