EXCLUSIVE: The Mentalist actor Simon Baker, Bruna Papandrea‘s Made Up Tales and Australian agent-producer Lee-Ann Higgins are taking to evolve Emily Perkins’ novel ‘Lioness.’
The trio have optioned the recent ebook, which comes from bestselling Aotearoa New Zealand creator Perkins and received the hot Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction on the 2024 Ockham New Zealand E book Awards.
Baker, who took his first complete TV sequence starring function since The Mentalist in Netflix’s Boy Swallows Universe previous this 12 months, will direct all episodes. Papandrea, Steve Hutensky and Katie Amos will produce for Made Up Tales, in conjunction with Higgins, Baker and Perkins.
Lioness follows Therese Thorne, a girl who has married a rich older guy and constructed a a hit profession, however now reveals a fraud investigation threatening her sense of loyalty in addition to her popularity. She faces a midlife reckoning about love and complicity, whilst being interested in her neighbour, Claire, who gives an attractive, wild, however dangerous new method to womanhood.
The deal for TV rights used to be negotiated with The Company (London), and is the newest female-led tale IP acquisition for Made Up Tales, which is in the back of the likes of 9 Best Strangers, Giant Little Lies and The Misplaced Vegetation of Alice Hart. In Might, we printed Made Up Tales had bought rights to expand the Fiona McIntosh novel ‘The Peal Thief’ as a characteristic movie. It’s also again in manufacturing on Binge authentic Strife and in post-production on Marcelle Lunam’s characteristic movie debut Addition.
Higgins, in the meantime, has had a 20-year profession as a skill rep after organising United Control with Natasha Harrison and Trish McAskill. Sooner than that, she labored with manufacturer Jan Chapman on motion pictures similar to The Piano, and produced Gillian Anderson-starrer The Final Days of Chez Nous, Ray Lawrence’s Lantana and Shirley Barrett’s Love Serenade.
Made Up Tales and Higgins mentioned in a joint observation: “It all the time begins with a singular voice that compels us to need to convey a really perfect tale to display, and after we first learn Emily’s ebook, we knew straight away this used to be for us. We’re excited to collaborate with in point of fact authentic creatives in Emily and Simon in adapting this intoxicating ebook for the display.”
Baker referred to as the ebook, “A phenomenal, witty and searingly truthful take a look at the dichotomy of aspiration and unique identification in our time. Emily Perkins in point of fact understands the complexity of other folks and has written characters so wealthy and attractive that I’m extremely joyful to be part of seeing them come to existence at the display.”
Australia-born Baker is best possible recognized for starring in CBS drama The Mentalist between 2008 and 2015, touchdown him Display Actors Guild-, Emmy- and Golden Globe nominations. His movie credit come with LA Confidential, The Satan Wears Prada and Margin Name, and has extra not too long ago seemed in Netflix hit Boy Swallows Universe, Stephen Johnson’s Prime Floor, Del Kathryn Barton’s directorial debut, Blaze, Apple TV anthology sequence Roar reverse Nicole Kidman, and Ivan Sen’s movie Limbo. He’s subsequent set to megastar in Top Video’s miniseries The Slender Street to the Deep North, which stars Jacob Elordi and springs from Sony Photos Tv, and Taika Waititi’s movie adaptation of the Kazoo Ishiguro novel ‘Klara and the Solar.’
Baker made his directorial debut with Breath, a 2018 adaptation of Tim Winton’s novel of the similar identify. It received him a DGA award and a nomination on the AACTA Awards — Australia’s solution to the Emmys.
Perkins mentioned: “I’m extremely joyful that ‘Lioness’ has been taken on by means of such sturdy inventive forces as Bruna Papandrea, Lee-Anne Higgins and Simon Baker – it’s nice to grasp they’ve attached with Therese’s tale, and I will’t wait to peer how they discover it for the display.”
Perkins is represented by means of Rogers, Coleridge and White.
