Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
A Cover Story on the Ozark creator’s new series. It shares a few major similarities, but there’s one big unknown.
In The Industry News, we explore the creator of Bojack Horseman’s new Netflix series. Will it be as dark as Bojack? Hulu wins a bidding war for a Vanity Fair article; this one could spawn a dozen seasons. Amazon’s The Assassin and Lord of the Rings… in anime.
In Actor’s Spotlight, Joe Pesci and Ron Perlman are in a Kubrick remake. And Kerry Condon feels some pressure.
In Festivals, we look at a Venice-bound film, about a Sicilian gangster in hiding, with a great connection to The Great Beauty. AFI is launching with a Music by John Williams documentary… did he compose the score?
For Indie Filmmaker Spotlight, we discuss Dakota Johnson’s open marriage in The Climb director’s Splitsville from Neon. Oscilliscope’s Universal Language reminds me of A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence. A $17 M Sundance sale yields a first look for It’s What’s Inside. And Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winner, In the Summers releases a trailer.
Let’s go!
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Don’t miss out on the Ted Hope live event: https://theindustry.co/p/how-to-pitch-your-screenplay
OZARK REDUX
The co-creator of Ozark, Bill Dubuque, is all in on a new series, M.I.A.
While the series synopsis for M.I.A. leans heavily into some of the elements that made Ozark so great, no accident, I’m sure:
South Florida-set series about a family running drugs for Etta Tiger Jonze, but when her family is slaughtered, she seeks justice to avenge her blood family while she builds her chosen family. The result has Etta on a series journey from a powerless orphan to South Florida’s most powerful criminal Queenpin.
Here’s the overlap with Ozark (and if you haven’t seen that show, go watch the first episode and then binge the rest because it’s wildly addictive):
Inciting incident is the murder of someone close to the protagonist
Family runs drugs
The protagonist becomes a ruthless drug lord
Overtures of a corrupted American Dream
Dubuque, who also wrote Ben Affleck’s The Accountant (2016), tends to focus on hyper-intellectual money managers whose genius is bent by criminal organizations.
It seems as if there is a thread running through Ozark, The Accountant, and M.I.A. But let’s hope there is enough difference to make this third iteration as compelling as the first two.
Whatever the “Tiger” is in Etta Tiger Jonze’s character in M.I.A, I can’t wait to watch.
No word yet on production dates. Or when it will premiere on Peacock.
For More:
Ozark opening monologue. The intangible value of money made tangible by Marty Bryde’s musings (clip).
The Accountant trailer. Superbly goofy.
Here are this week’s industry jobs: https://theindustry.co/p/industry-jobs-82224
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
The Darkest Show Ever Written was about a Horse: BoJack Horseman showed mastery of remorse, it was beautiful, funny and heartbreaking. Now it's creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg makes his return to Netflix in 2025 with another animated show that will follow a family over a period of time called Long Story Short.
Here’s the synopsis:
The shared history, the inside jokes, the old wounds. If you’ve ever had a mother, father, sibling, partner or child, this is the show for you and by the way would it kill you to call them?
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