Margaery Tyrell is making her way to Amazon. Deadline reports that the streaming service has picked up “Picnic at Hanging Rock,” a six-episode Australian period drama toplined by “Game of Thrones” alumna Natalie Dormer. The re-imagining of Joan Lindsay’s 1967 novel is being overseen “The Whistleblower” helmer Larysa Kondracki, who also directed the pilot and two other episodes of the mystery. Beatrix Christian (“Jindabyne”) is credited as script producer and establishing writer, and Alice Addison (“The Hunter”) penned the series.
Scheduled for a 2018 premiere on Amazon Prime Video US, “Picnic at Hanging Rock” sees Dormer playing English headmistress Mrs. Hester Appleyard, “a woman whose dead husband instructs her daily life and whose peculiarities are surely hiding dark skeletons,” Deadline summarizes. The series “chronicles the mysterious disappearances of three schoolgirls and one teacher on Valentine’s Day 1900. The complex, interwoven narrative follows the subsequent investigation and the event’s far-reaching impact on the students, families, and staff of Appleyard College, and on the nearby township.”
The supporting cast includes Yael Stone (“Orange is the New Black”), Lily Sullivan (“Camp”), and Madeleine Madden (“Tomorrow When the War Began”).
“Picnic at Hanging Rock” hails from distributor FremantleMedia International.
“The stylish re-imagining of the provocative ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ story will no doubt capture contemporary audiences across the U.S.,” said Caroline Kusser, SVP, Sales & Distribution for FremantleMedia International in North America. “With fantastic scripts, outstanding cast, and bold editorial direction from Larysa Kondracki, ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ is set to be a must-see series in 2018. We are thrilled to be working with Amazon Prime Video to bring this powerful drama to U.S. screens.”
The show’s world premiere will be on Foxtel in Australia sometime in 2018.
Amanda Brotchie (“Girlboss”) is also among the series’ directors.
Kondracki has helmed episodes of many high-profile series including “Power,” “Legion,” “Better Call Saul,” “Halt and Catch Fire,” “The Americans,” and “The Walking Dead.” When we asked what advice she’d give other female directors, Kondracki responded, “Don’t think too hard about it. You aren’t a ‘female director.’ You’re a director. Just do it.”
Best known for her role on “Game of Thrones,” Dormer’s other credits include “The Tudors,” “Elementary,” and the “Hunger Games” franchise. “It was refreshing to play a character who wasn’t defined by a love entanglement or a marital ambition. She is there because she the best at her job,” she said of her character in the latter, Cressida.
