The Midwich Cuckoos–the 1957 s/f novel by John Wyndham that was the springboard for two Village of the Damned feature films–is now being made into a television series.
David Farr–the writer behind AMC’s The Night Manager dramatic series–will handle the adaptation for British broadcaster Sky TV, as reported by Deadline.
Farr reportedly is turning the novel into an eight-part TV series that does not yet have a title, but Village of the Damned is free right now and wouldn’t be a bad choice.
The Midwich Cuckoos–considered one of Wyndham’s standout volumes, alongside The Day of the Triffids–has already been adapted (twice!) for the Silver Screen.
The first adaptation–directed by Wolf Rilla and starring George Sanders–was a 1960 film for MGM Studios, a sleeper hit that grossed $2.2 million at the box office on a budget of just $320,000.
The second–released in 1995–was helmed by Halloween director John Carpenter for Universal Pictures. This version, set in North Carolina instead of England, starred Christopher Reeve (in his last released film before he was paralyzed in an equestrian accident in May 1995) and Kirstie Alley. This film–with the tagline, “Beware the Children”–suffered through bad reviews and a disappointing showing at the box office.
The original novel tells the horrifying story of the English village of Midwich, where a mysterious sequence of events results in several women in the village becoming pregnant and giving birth to otherworldly children with psychic powers, the use of which lead to violent and deadly consequences.
The new TV series is housed at ITV Studios-backed Route 24, run by producer Marc Samuelson, and Snowed-In Productions, a sister company of Bronte Film and Television.
Keep reading Horror News Network for additional details on this small screen adaptation of The Midwich Cuckoos.
