Back in April 2017, TNT announced it would not be moving forward with a TV show based on the acclaimed Swedish vampire novel/movie Let the Right One In, but the creative team behind the series never gave up hope, and now Showtime has come to the rescue, ordering a pilot that will star Oscar-nominated actor Demián Bichir (A Better Life).
Bichir will play Mark, a husband and father who had the perfect life until it was turned upside down by a mysterious creature who bit his young daughter, Eleanor, and then vanished into the night. 10 years later, the now 12-year-old girl is locked indoors and only able to go out at night, while her father does his best to provide her with the minimal amount of human blood she needs to stay alive. The elevated genre series aims to upend genre expectations as it turns a naturalistic lens on human frailty, strength and compassion.
Award-winning playwright, writer and producer Andrew Hinderaker (Penny Dreadful) will serve as showrunner and executive produce along with Seith Mann (Homeland), who will also direct the pilot. Let the Right One In is produced by Tomorrow Studios (Snowpiercer), with Marty Adelstein and Becky Clements also serving as executive producers. Bichir will serve as a producer on the show, which seems likely to be picked up to series given genre fans' fondness for the original film.
“Let the Right One In quickly establishes itself as a thrilling, high-stakes drama that asks the question: How far would you go to save your child from the monsters out there -- would you risk becoming a monster yourself?” said Showtime's Amy Israel. “Demián Bichir is one of the world’s most dynamic and engrossing actors, and his charisma and vulnerability will surely bring Andrew Hinderaker’s exquisite script to life, guided by Seith Mann’s deft direction. We couldn’t be more excited about the potential of this show.”
“The series is both a love letter to the original film and a story entirely our own," added Hinderaker. "Casting a true artist like Demián epitomizes our bold aspiration to be one of the most terrifying shows on TV, and one of the most moving.”
Bichir received an Oscar nomination for his performance in the 2011 film A Better Life, becoming the first Mexican-born actor to be nominated in that category since Anthony Quinn 45 years earlier. He first came to the attention of U.S. audiences on the Showtime series Weeds, making Let the Right One In a reunion of sorts. Bichir went on to star in the FX series The Bridge, while his feature credits include Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight, Ridley Scott's Alien: Covenant, Paul Feig's comedy The Heat and New Line's hit horror movie The Nun. More recently, Bichir co-starred in George Clooney’s Netflix movie The Midnight Sky and Robin Wright’s feature directorial debut Land, and he'll soon be seen in Godzilla vs. Kong, which will debut on HBO Max and in theaters later this month.