Netflix Lands Cult-Classic Horror Masterpiece for Planned Series

One of the most acclaimed independent comic book creators of the past forty years is Charles Burns, the award-winning comic book writer and artist whose series, Black Hole, was serialized for over a decade in individual issues, and which was ultimately collected in 2005, becoming one of the most beloved graphic novels of the century. Now, the cult classic is about to finally make its move off of the printed page, with Netflix ordering a Black Hole TV adaption straight to series.

The series will be produced by New Regency (Netflix will be the co-studio of the series), and Plan B and Erin Levy will be among the executive producers on the project. The creator of the series, and the showrunner, will be Jane Schoenbrun, who is coming off of the acclaimed film, I Saw the TV Glow. Schoenbrun will also direct the series.

What is Black Hole about?

As we noted in a past spotlight on Black Hole during a month of horror comics (recommended by notable horror comic creators. The great Phil Hester picked Black Hole), the set-up of Charles Burns' Black Hole is so wonderfully simple. A sexual transmitted disease being spread among teens in the Seattle area in the mid 1970s is literally turning afflicted teens into monsters...well, at least mutated versions of themselves (as some of the mutations are easier to conceal than others).

The official description for Netflix is as follows:

There’s an old myth that haunts the seemingly perfect small town of Roosevelt: if you have sex too young, you’ll contract the “bug,” a virus that literally turns you into a “monster” from your worst nightmares. Absurd, right? That’s what Chris always assumed, until, after one reckless night at the beginning of senior year, she finds herself infected. Now she’ll be cast out to the woods to live with the other infected, where a chilling, new threat emerges: a serial killer who’s hunting them one-by-one.

How long have fans been waiting for Black Hole to be adapted?

Burns' brilliant work has always seemed like it would translate perfectly to film, and as soon as the graphic novel was released, there was talk of a film coming out as soon as 2006! Alexandre Aja was the first director attached to the project, with a script from Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary. Plan B was involved in that project, as well, working with MTV Films and Paramount Pictures.

Then, in 2008, David Fincher was connected with the project (with a brand-new script). He dropped out to do The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo in 2010, but three years later he was attached to the project once more.

In 2018, New Regency bought the rights, and planned to do the story as a film, directed by Rick Famuyiwa, hot off of his acclaimed film, Dope. That project fell apart, but now New Regency is bringing the story to television, instead. It's notable that they received a straight-to-series commitment. There apparently were multiple bidders from other streaming services, showing that this acclaimed story still has heat on it. Fans will be thrilled to know that after all of the stops and starts, it's finally definitely becoming a reality.

Source: Deadline