Karyn Kusama is following up 2018 Nicole Kidman-starrer “Destroyer” with another crime thriller, this one for the small screen. Variety reports that she’s been tapped to direct a series adaptation of 2000 feature “Sexy Beast” for Paramount Network.
The series will “tell the origin story of Gal Dove (played in the film by Ray Winstone), a brilliant thief who finds himself descending into the seductive madness of the London criminal world during the vibrant and volatile 1990s,” the source details. “The series will explore the early days of Gal’s complicated relationship with Don Logan (played in the film by Ben Kingsley), a vicious gangster with whom Gal forms a partnership, the beginnings of his association with criminal mastermind Teddy Bass (played in the film by Ian McShane), and how Gal met and fell in love with DeeDee (played in the film by Amanda Redman), an adult film star who would become his wife.”
Kusama is among the exec producers on the project, which has received a 10-episode first season.
Keith Cox, president of development and production for Paramount Network and TV Land, commented on the “exceptional style Kusama plans to bring to the series.”
Kusama TV credits include “Halt and Catch Fire” and “Billions.” She made her feature debut with 2000’s “Girlfight.” “Jennifer’s Body” and “The Invitation” are among her other film credits. Her most recent feature, “Destroyer,” saw Kidman playing an LAPD detective haunted by her past.
When we asked Kusama what differences she’s noticed in the industry in the wake of the #TimesUp and #MeToo movements, she said, “I think there’s a larger awareness around the practical challenges that women face in the film business: the explicit and implicit barriers, the difficulty in building and maintaining careers, the sense of doors closing far too early for too many women.”
She continued, “It does seem like more and more production entities are acknowledging that they have to start playing a part in implementing the big changes. Even more importantly, it feels like we’re starting to reckon with how damaging it is to diminish the voices and experiences of half our population in the culture. I hope that with more opportunities and visibility we start to see the vastness of all of these female sensibilities within storytelling.”
