‘Watchmen’ Ordered to Series at HBO
By Joe Otterson
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Damon Lindelof’s “Watchmen” has officially been ordered to series at HBO.
The series is based on the DC graphic novel from Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins. It is set in an alternate history where “superheroes” are treated as outlaws. The series is slated to debut in 2019.
The cast includes: Regina King, Jeremy Irons, Don Johnson, Tim Blake Nelson, Louis Gossett Jr., Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Adelaide Clemens, Andrew Howard, Tom Mison, Frances Fisher, Jacob Ming-Trent, Sara Vickers, Dylan Schombing, Lily Rose Smith, and Adelynn Spoon.
Lindelof will write and executive produce, with Nicole Kassell directing the pilot and executive producing. Stephen Williams will also direct and executive produce, with Joseph Iberti and Tom Spezialy also executive producing. “Watchmen” is produced for HBO by White Rabbit in association with Warner Bros. Television, based on characters from DC. HBO’s official description of the series says, “‘Watchmen’ embraces the nostalgia of the original groundbreaking graphic novel while attempting to break new ground of its own.” That is in keeping with the letter Lindelof posted for fans back in May in which he stated that the show will not be a re-telling of the story from the graphic novel, but rather a new story in the same world with new characters set in the present day.“Some of the characters will be unknown,” Lindelof wrote. “New faces. New masks to cover them. We also intend to revisit the past century of Costumed Adventuring through a surprising yet familiar set of eyes…and it is here we will be taking our greatest risks.”HBO’s other recent series orders include “Euphoria,” based on the Israeli series of the same name, as well as the Joss Whedon sci-fi series “The Nevers” and the Spanish-language comedy “Los Espookys.”
