One of the wildest heist stories put to paper is getting a series adaptation from B-Reel Films, the producers behind Midsommar, and Borg vs McEnroe's Ronnie Sandahl. Variety reports that the two are teaming up for a series based on the Swedish true crime novel The Helicopter Heist from author Jonas Bonnier. Originally, rights for the novel were in the hands of Jake Gyllenhaal's Nine Stories studio with the hopes of a feature film for Netflix, but nothing ever came of the project.
The Helicopter Heist is based on the very real Västberga helicopter robbery, an event about as chaotic as a Grand Theft Auto 5 heist. On September 23, 2009, a group of men in Sweden stole a Bell 206 helicopter from Roslagens helicopter base in order to break into and rob a G4S cash service depot building in broad daylight. Through an elaborate setup of caltrops and decoy bombs, they managed to deter police from getting into the building or following them with their own helicopters, allowing them to blast through security doors and make off with over $4 million in the helicopter before those involved were eventually arrested. Bonnier's book was more character-driven however, diving into the individual stories of four Swedish men and how they came to be involved in one of the most absurd heists ever planned.
Sandahl is set to write the script and create the series that B-Reel Films will produce. Sandahl will have a little more to work with than when Gyllenhaal was working on the story, as Variety states his adaptation will have "exclusive new material and details that put the heist in a new perspective." He'll also have Johannes Åhlund, who produced another Bonnier adaptation in The Congregation, on board as a producer. Ulf Synnerholm and Fredrik Heinig will both executive produce through B-Reel.
"For a long time I’ve been dreaming about writing the ultimate heist story," Sandahl said in a statement. "To me, this is the one: a feverish and playful Icarus tale about winning, or losing, it all." Åhlund noted that B-Reel had been looking for a good project for Sandahl for some time and was thrilled about the potential of the story, saying, "We have high ambitions with this and it will need a substantial budget but we can also see that this story and the creative team we are starting to build means it has a great potential to reach audiences worldwide."
When Gyllenhaal was still on board, the film had tapped Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight to write and was eying the directors of Free Solo Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin to helm the project. Sandahl will handle half of that, but the film still needs a director to lead the insane heist story. Whoever boards will have their work cut out for them in bringing to life this real, stranger-than-fiction true-crime tale.
Stay tuned here at Collider for more updates on Sandahl's The Helicopter Heist series.