Though his future as James Bond may be up in the air, Daniel Craig has landed a starring role in an upcoming limited series on Showtime called Purity. The series will be based on the novel by author Jonathan Franzen with Craig acting as an executive producer as well. The series has also hired director Todd Field who, in an unusual move for television, will direct all 20 episodes of the series. Joining Craig on the production side is Scott Rudin, Eli Bush, David Hare and Jonathan Franzen himself.
Showtime president and CEO David Nevens also made a statement about the news, saying “Jonathan Franzen’s Purity is an epic American novel that pulses with the energy of a psychological thriller. I whipped through it in a week. His gripping and timely story has attracted a powerhouse team – Todd Field, Scott Rudin, Eli Bush, David Hare, along with Franzen himself, and the brilliant Daniel Craig who is perfectly cast as the charismatic, mysterious ‘Andreas Wolf.’ Put it all together and ‘Purity’ promises to be the kind of taut, long-form, serialized storytelling that is the best of premium television, and is precisely what we at Showtime aspire to deliver.”
Purity follows the characters Andreas Wolf, whom Craig is playing, and Purity ‘Pip’ Tyler, navigating through a large cast and a story that takes place over the course of decades as it focuses on youthful idealism, identity and murder. The series will go into production in 2017 for a two season run. Whether that will conflict with Bond 25, if Craig will even return to the role, remains to be seen, but we can be sure the answer will come as Purity goes into development.
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Originally published June 1, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
