EXCLUSIVE: Miramax Television is rebooting cult 1997 horror sci-fi thriller movie Mimic as a TV series. Paul WS Anderson is set to direct the potential pilot and executive produce the series with his longtime producing partner Jeremy Bolt.
Jim Danger Gray (Orange Is the New Black) will write the adaptation, executive produce and serve as showrunner. Based on Donald A. Wollheim’s short story of the same name, Mimic revolves around genetically engineered insects who evolve, developing the ability to mimic their human prey, and the race to stop them from taking over.
This marks one of the highest-profile projects at Miramax TV since Marc Helwig was appointed Head of Worldwide Television in May, when he indicated that mining the Miramax film library for TV projects is “is one important part” of his strategy.
“Miramax TV couldn’t be more thrilled to be in business with Paul Anderson, Jeremy Bolt and Jim Danger Gray on Mimic,” Helwig said of the new series, which will be shopped to buyers soon. “Paul is one of the leading filmmakers of his generation in the world of science fiction, and we are excited to bring a bold new take on this classic title to life in television that will make your skin crawl, scare the hell out of you and speak loudly to these strange times we all find ourselves in. I couldn’t think of a better writer to bring this world to life than Jim Danger Gray, whose work I’ve admired for a long time.”
Together, Anderson and Bolt created the $1.1 billion Resident Evil horror sci-fi franchise. The duo’s credits also include Event Horizon and Death Race, among others.
“The world of insects has been a long-term fascination of mine,” Anderson said. “So much strength and organization from such tiny creatures that have existed long before humankind and will survive long after our demise. It’s an exciting world that I’m thrilled to jump into, especially with such great partners as Jim and Miramax.”
Gray also has thriller/horror background, having served as a writer-producer on the NBC series Hannibal. On the genre side, he also served as an executive producer on the Game of Thrones prequel pilot starring Naomi Watts.
“Mimic explores, on its surface, the idea of insects taking over,” Gray said. “Body horror, the anxiety of ‘a bug’ living inside of us, the death of truth, the denial of science and the rise of personal entitlement are at the heart of our show as it examines how society is eaten alive by an invasion that is laying bare its greatest insecurities and failures.”
The 1997 Mimic, co-written and directed by Guillermo del Toro and produced by Miramax’s genre label Dimension Films, starred Mira Sorvino, Jeremy Northam and Josh Brolin. The movie spawned two direct-to-video sequels. Del Toro, who in 2011 released his director’s cut of the original film, had no part in the sequels and also is not involved in the TV series.
Miramax, a beIN Media Group and ViacomCBS company, has Halloween Kills, a new installment on the blockbuster horror franchise starring Jamie Lee Curtis, produced by Miramax with Trancas International Films and Blumhouse Productions. It is slated for release this year
Miramax’s global television content slate included The Turkish Detective, a detective series co-produced with ViacomCBS International Studios, and Spy City, a six-part espionage Cold War series from Miramax and Germany’s H&V Entertainment.