Florence Pugh and Zoe Kazan are teaming up to bring “East of Eden” to Netflix. The former will star in the limited series adaptation of the beloved, widely acclaimed John Steinbeck novel and the latter is penning it. Netflix landed the project following “a competitive bidding war,” per Deadline.
Published in 1952, “East of Eden” tells the interconnected stories of two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons.
Kazan’s grandfather, Elia Kazan, helmed a 1955 film adaptation of the novel.
“I fell in love with ‘East of Eden’ when I first read it, in my teens. Since then, adapting Steinbeck’s novel — the great, sprawling, three-generational entirety of it — has been my dream. More than anything, I have wanted to give full expression to the novel’s astonishing, singular antiheroine, Cathy Ames,” Kazan said. “Florence Pugh is our dream Cathy; I can’t imagine a more thrilling actor to bring this character to life. Writing this limited series over the last two years has been the creative highpoint of my life. I hope that with our partners at Netflix, Anonymous Content, and Endeavor Content, we can do justice to this material — and shed new light on it for a 21st century audience.”
A director isn’t attached yet. Kazan is exec producing and Pugh is co-producing the project.
Pugh received an Oscar nomination in 2020 for her depiction of Amy in Greta Gerwig’s “Little Women.” Kazan’s mother, Robin Swicord, wrote Gillian Armstrong’s 1994 adaptation of the classic coming-of-age novel by Louisa May Alcott.
“Black Widow,” “Midsommar,” and “Fighting with My Family” are among Pugh’s credits. Her upcoming slate includes “Don’t Worry Darling,” Olivia Wilde’s second feature as a director.
Kazan wrote the screenplay for “Ruby Sparks,” a 2012 comedy she also starred in. She co-wrote the script for the 2018 drama “Wildlife.” Her on-screen credits include “The Plot Against America,” “The Deuce,” and “The Big Sick.” She’ll star alongside Carey Mulligan in “She Said,” a depiction of how New York Times reporters Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor broke the Harvey Weinstein story. Maria Schrader (“Unorthodox”) is directing the film.
