Duncan Jones to Direct TV Adaptation of ‘Killer Intent’
By Leo Barraclough
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Duncan Jones, who won a BAFTA for his debut feature “Moon,” is to direct a television adaptation of Tony Kent’s thriller “Killer Intent.” The series will be produced by Liberty Films, the London- and L.A.-based production company of Stuart Fenegan and Jones, who is David Bowie’s son.
Kent will adapt his novel alongside an “American-style writers’ room of established TV talent,” according to a statement. Jones will executive produce alongside Fenegan, who acquired the screen rights for “Killer Intent” in advance of the hardback release earlier this year.
It will be Liberty’s first foray into television. Jones and Fenegan have previously worked exclusively in feature films with credits such as “Moon,” “Source Code,” “Warcraft” and “Mute.”
Jones said: “Tony’s writing style is already so cinematic, working with him and a room of writers to adapt his first book will be a thrill. I’m excited to get my teeth into some contemporary set action, and have time to develop characters over a series rather than a single film.”
Fenegan said: “I’ve loved the work of John Grisham and Lee Child for years. When I read an early draft of ‘Killer Intent’ I knew it was special and deserved a place on the shelf, and on the screen, alongside those authors. Having spent a great deal of time with Tony discussing his characters and the journeys they will embark on in future books, I know television is the right medium in which to do them justice.”
“Killer Intent” is the first in the series of thrillers featuring intelligence agent Joe Dempsey, Irish barrister Michael Devlin and American television journalist Sarah Truman. Kent’s debut novel was selected in the U.K. press as one of the “must-read books” of 2018, and was recently featured in Zoe Ball’s Book Club on U.K. broadcaster ITV, where it was described as “a thriller that really does thrill… absolutely compulsive, immensely enjoyable.”
“Killer Intent” is published by Elliott & Thompson.
