Back in July it was announced that Fox and Canal+ are joining forces for a contemporary reimagining of H.G. Wells’ sci-fi classic War of the Worlds, and now comes word from Variety that Greg Kinnear (House of Cards) is in talks for the lead role in the series.
The eight-part drama has been created by Howard Overman (Merlin), who has described the project as “a cautionary tale of racial superiority and ethnic conflict” and stated that he is looking to create a “bold, fresh and relatable” version of the Martian invasion tale.
The War of the Worlds series sees “astronomers detecting a transmission from another galaxy, giving definitive proof of intelligent extra-terrestrial life. Earth’s population waits for further contact with baited breath, but does not have to wait long. Within days, mankind is all but wiped out, with just pockets of humanity are left in an eerily deserted world. As alien ships appear in the sky, the survivors ask a burning question — who are these attackers and why are they hell-bent on our destruction?”
The project is not to be confused with the BBC’s own upcoming three-part TV adaptation The War of the Worlds, which retains the Victorian setting of Wells’ novel and stars Rafe Spall (Life of Pi) and Eleanor Tomlinson (Jack the Giant Slayer).
