After adapting the satirical dark comedy classic novel Catch-22 in grand fashion for Hulu, George Clooney will dip his toe back into the sci-fi genre as he has signed on to star in and direct Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of the well-received 2016 novel Good Morning, Midnight, according to Variety.
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The novel, written by Lily Brooks-Dalton, follows the brilliant yet aging astronomer Augustine, who has lived in various remote outposts over the years studying the sky, but shortly after arriving at a new Arctic research center, news of a catastrophic event hits and despite the rest of the scientists evacuating, he chooses to remain and continue his work, in the process discovering a mysterious child named Iris as the radio waves go silent at the station.
Simultaneously, an astronaut named Sullivan is on her return flight home from Jupiter with the rest of her team, who are the first humans to travel this deep into space, which led to her having to leave her daughter behind and her marriage ending. Despite the mission being a success thus far, the journey home proves problematic when communication with Mission Control falls silent, creating a fear of whether or not they will ever get home. With Augustine’s dedication to his work and Sullivan’s crew unsure of their trip, their worlds are about to collide in a major way.
The adaptation is currently being penned by Mark L. Smith, who’s more successful works include the 2009 family horror-comedy The Hole, 2015’s Oscar-winning biographical epic western The Revenant and last year’s well-received war horror film Overlord, and is being produced by Clooney and Smokehouse Pictures’ Grant Heslov alongside Anonymous Content and Syndicate Entertainment.
“Grant and I couldn’t be more excited to be involved with this incredible project,” Clooney said in a statement. “Mark is a writer we’ve long admired and his script is haunting. We’re thrilled to be working with our friends at Netflix as well.”
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“Having known and worked with George for over two decades, I can’t think of anyone better to bring this amazing story to life,” Scott Stuber, head of Netflix’s film division, said in a statement. “The book is powerful and moving, and Mark’s adaptation is beautifully written. At its core, this is a story about human nature, and one that I know our global audiences will fall in love with, just like I did when I read it.”
Production is set to begin on the untitled adaptation in October.
