According to Deadline, A24 is teaming with Oscar-nominated producer Jennifer Fox (Nightcrawler) for a TV series adaptation of Ursula Le Guin’s fantasy book series Earthsea.
Consisting of five novels and eight short stories, Earthsea is “set in a fantasy archipelago of hundreds of islands, imperiled by those who use magic to gain power and upset its delicate balance.”
“Ursula Le Guin is a literary legend with a huge fan base and her work has been translated into practically every written language on the globe,” said Fox. “She is second only to Tolkien in influence in this genre, and before she died last year, she agreed to put her most beloved work in my hands. This project is, therefore, a sacred trust and priority for me as well as an opportunity to create an iconic piece of American culture.”
Fox first acquired the rights to the books before Le Guin’s passing in January 2018, and originally intended to produce a series of films before reworking the project for television. A24 will be shopping the project to interested outlets soon.
Earthsea was previously adapted by the Sci-Fi Channel as a two-part miniseries in 2004, which came in for much criticism from both fans of the books and Le Guin herself. It also inspired the 2006 Studio Ghibli animated feature Tales from Earthsea directed by Goro Miyazaki.
Originally published September 8, 2019. Updated September 7, 2019.
