One of 2013's best films, Snowpiercer, is headed to television

By Rick Marshall November 12, 2015

Jamie Bell, Chris Evans, and other cast members standing in Snowpiercer (2013) — CJ Entertainment

The Host director Bong Joon-ho’s dystopian 2013 sci-fi film Snowpiercer was one of the year’s critical darlings despite an underwhelming performance at the box office, and now the story of a train carrying the last remnants of the human species through an arctic tundra is headed to television.

A new report indicates that the film — which was based on Jean-Marc Rochette’s graphic novel Le Transperceneige — will serve as the inspiration for a series scripted by Avatar 2 and War of the Worlds screenwriter Josh Friedman.

Set in a post-apocalyptic future where humanity’s meddling with the weather has created a new Ice Age, Snowpiercer unfolded aboard a massive, high-speed train carrying all that remains of the human species. With the train rigidly divided between social classes, a character played by Chris Evans (Captain America: The First Avenger) leads a violent revolt to bring down the privileged residents of the first-class cars and change the balance of power.

Bong and Snowpiercer co-producer Dooho Choi will serve as two of the executive producers on the series, according to The Hollywood Reporter, along with Marty Adelstein of Tomorrow Studios, which recently picked up the rights to adapt the film for television. Oldboy and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance director Chan-wook Park, who also produced the original Snowpiercer, is also attached as an executive producer on the adaptation.

“I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity,” said Friedman of the project. “I’m a huge fan of director Bong’s films, especially Snowpiercer. It’s great the way the best sci-fi is great — thoughtful, political, funny, scary and sly. And it’s on a train. A big f—ing train. What more could you want?”

Along with his work on Steven Spielberg’s 2005 adaptation of War of the Worlds, Friedman also helped develop the Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles series for Fox and the never-aired television adaptation of the Locke & Key comic book series.

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