‘Drive’ Director Nicolas Winding Refn Developing a Show Based on ‘The Famous Five’ Children’s Book Series
Nicolas Winding Refn is reportedly working on a series for ZDF and BBC that is based on a well-known children’s book The Famous Five. He is reportedly eager to see how it turns out. In the southwest of the United Kingdom, the series is currently being filmed.
Sarah Muller, senior head of children’s commissioning for the BBC’s 7+, and Amy Buscombe, commissioning editor, commissioned the series. Frank Seyberth and Katharina Kremling are ZDF’s commissioning editors. Tim Kirkby helms it. Moonage’s minority shareholder, BBC Studios, who also negotiated the co-production and pre-sales agreements with TF1 and ZDF, will manage the international distribution.
Nicolas Winding Refn developing The Famous Five
Filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn who is known for his shocking visual and extreme approach to storytelling, is developing the beloved 21 novels and short stories The Famous Five, written by Enid Blyton between 1942 to 1963 for BBC and ZDF. As the title suggests, The Famous Five follows the lives of five young explorers; Julian, Dick, Anne, George, and their dog Timmy who on their way encounter treacherous, action-packed adventures, remarkable mysteries, unparalleled danger, and astounding secrets.
This is not the first time that the beloved and famous novel has been adapted for television, as there have been adaptations of the same for movies, TV, audio, theatre, and graphic novels. A German film adaptation named Fünf Freunde, based on 1947’s Five on Kirrin Island Again, was released in 2012.
According to reports by Deadline, the series is set to be made into three 90-minute features, which is going to be exciting for the audience who are aware of the premise of the novel.
Who is writing The Famous Five’s script?
It has been revealed that the features, which are going to be 90 minutes long, are written by three different writers; the first episode is written by Matthew Read, the second by Priya K Dosanjh, and the third is written by Matthew Bouch and Matthew Read.
The filmmaker said, “All my life I’ve fought vigorously to remain a child with a lust for adventure. By reimagining The Famous Five, I am preserving that notion by bringing these iconic stories to life for a progressive new audience, instilling the undefinable allure and enchantment of childhood for current and future generations to come.”
Patricia Hidalgo, BBC Children’s Director also shared her view, on the same as she mentioned, “These stories are loved around the world and bringing families together is a key part of our strategy, so we hope it introduces a new generation of viewers to these wonderful adventures.”
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Reactions to Nicolas Winding Refn’s adaptation of The Famous Five announcement
Considering that it’s a famous and beloved children’s book and is being adapted into today’s world for probably today’s audience, there will be reactions from the audience probably surprisingly, everyone seems on board with the idea.
Journalist Morgan Jeffery adds: “I’ll admit it, I didn’t have ‘Nicolas Winding Refn reboots the Famous Five’ on my Bingo card.” Publisher Dee Stevens shared on Twitter that it is going to be wild, adding that the filmmaker should “Give us Ryan Gosling guzzling ginger beer, under a neon-lit moon while punching his way to solving a pirate mystery.”
The Famous Five will be a contemporary, timely, and irreverent action series with adventure at its core, said Will Gould, co-founder of Moonage Pictures, in a statement made to announce the project. Through his byNWR Originals company, the Danish director is executive producing for the BBC and German public broadcaster ZDF alongside Moonage Pictures, which is supported by BBC Studios.
Source: Deadline
