SERIES MANIA: Entertainment One (eOne) has partnered with the creator of Italian mafia series Gomorrah on a drama based on the life of Muammar Gaddafi.

Roberto Saviano

Gaddafi is being developed by Italian journalist, writer, and essayist Roberto Saviano, whose novel about the Italian criminal organisation Camorra spawned the crime drama Gomorrah.

Gaddafi ruled Libya as a dictator for 42 years until 2011, when he was captured and killed by revolutionaries in an anti-Gaddafist uprising.

Since 2006, Saviano has been living under police protection due to death threats made by the Casalesi clan, a cartel within the Camorra.

Rome-based Palomar will produce the series, to which eOne will control worldwide rights. It will be executive produced and written by Saviano alongside co-creator Nadav Schirman (The Green Prince).

“This is a TV series about a warrior, a dreamer who becomes a savage and merciless tyrant; a multi-millionaire oil tycoon and a vicious oppressor,” said Saviano.

Carrie Stein, executive VP of global production at eOne Television, added: “Roberto’s commitment to research and his ability to weave the details of Gaddafi’s rise and fall into a tapestry of captivating storytelling will make for great television.”