According to Deadline, Academy Award-nominated actor Chiwetel Ejiofor has officially signed on for the leading role in creator Alex Kurtzman’s upcoming series adaptation of The Man Who Fell to Earth, based on music icon David Bowie’s 1976 cult classic film of the same name. The project has been in development for more than a year and was originally set up at CBS All Access. Following the streamer’s upcoming rebranding on March 4, The Man Who Fell to Earth series will now debut on Paramount+.
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This marks Ejiofor’s first major TV project after seven years since starring in BBC’s limited series Dancing on the Edge which earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series. He will next be seen in Marvel Studios’ highly-anticipated sequel Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness where he reprises his roles as Mordo.
The Man Who Fell to Earth will follow the story of an alien who arrives on Earth at a turning point in human evolution and must confront his own past to determine our future. The series will be co-written by Kurtzman and Lumet with Kurtzman also set to direct.
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The original film was based on author Walter Tevis’ science fiction novel of the same name. It was directed by Nicolas Roeg from a screenplay written by Paul Mayersberg. The movie was David Bowie’s first starring role in a feature film.
In addition to Kurtzman, Lumet, and Hlavin, The Man Who Fell to Earth series will also be executive produced by Rola Bauer, Tim Halkin, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly, Heather Kadin, and Aaron Baiers.
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The series will be co-produced by CBS Television Studios and TANDEM Productions, a STUDIOCANAL Company, in association with Secret Hideout and Timberman/Beverly. STUDIOCANAL owns the rights for both Walter Tevis’ book as well as the iconic Nicolas Roeg film with David Bowie.
(Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb)
