Neil Gaiman And Akiva Goldsman To Bring Gormenghast To Television
by Erik Amaya
Fantasy continues to be a big well for television producers as FremantleMedia North America announced today it has won the rights to Mervyn Peake’s gothic fantasy book series, Gormenghast.
The series traces the life of Titus Groan, the 77th Earl of Groan. He is a reluctant heir, but one who stands to inherit the miles of rambling stone and mortar that form Gormenghast Castle and its kingdom, unless the charismatic, but twisted Steerpike rises above his kitchen boy station to take control of the House of Groan. Titus comes to realize that the fortress isn’t simply a castle stifled by traditions, but a legacy that provides him with the foundations to survive and thrive in the world outside the castle walls.
Joining FremantleMedia North America on the journey to bring Gormenghast to the screen are Sandman writer Neil Gaiman and A Beautiful Mind screenwriter Akiva Goldsman. “There is nothing in literature like Mervyn Peake’s remarkable Gormenghast novels,” said Gaiman in a statement. “They were crafted by a master, who was also an artist, and they take us to an ancient castle as big as a city, with heroes and villains and people larger than life that are impossible to forget. There is a reason why there were two trilogies that lovers of the fantasy genre embraced in the Sixties: Lord of the Rings, and the Gormenghast books. It’s an honor to have been given the opportunity to help shepherd Peake’s brilliant and singular vision to the screen.”
It is, of course, unclear when or where the series will air, but it does indicate fantasy will be a mainstay genre in the era of streaming television after HBO’s Game of Thrones delivers its final episodes next year. Besides Gormenghast, series based on The Lord of the Rings, Frank Miller’s upcoming Cursed and Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time have all been announced. Which all means there’s never been a better time to enjoy fantasy television. Well, provided they all get their individual tones right.
Gormenghast was previously adapted on television before in the form of an ambitious 2000 BBC television series featuring actors like Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Stephen Fry and Christopher Lee.
