Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Star Trek Into Darkness star Benedict Cumberbatch is officially set to lead Studiocanal and SunnyMarch's adaptation of Matt Haig's best-selling sci-fi novel, How To Stop Time, which has been "rejigged" from a feature to a TV series.
Studiocanal optioned the rights to the book six years ago and was initially developing it for the big screen. Studiocanal CEO Anna Marsh revealed at Mip TV today that the project will now be a six-part TV show, with Cumberbatch and SunnyMarch still attached.
DC Moore (Sky/AMC’s Mary & George) and Tomas Alfredson (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) will write and direct, respectively, with production set to commence in London and across Europe next year
“When I first read How to Stop Time, the potential of this story was immediately obvious,” said Cumberbatch. “In his inimitable style, Matt once again explores what it is to be human and what it is to live a life – a very long one in this case – with pathos, insight, humour, drama and inspiration.”
Deadline describes the project as a "high-stakes superhero thriller about men and women who suffer from a rare condition that makes them live for hundreds and hundreds of years. Born in 15th century France, Cumberbatch’s Tom Hazard has time and time again lost everything he loves. More than 600 years on from his birth, he is caught in the middle of a secret war."