Halcyon Studios preps Hemingway, Dinotopia adaptations for new slate

LA-based production company Halcyon Studios is dipping into the IP vault as it builds its 2022 slate, which includes an adaptation of Ernest Hemingway’s Old Man & The Sea and a series based on James Gurney’s Dinotopia books.

David Ellender

Halcyon Studios was formed last year after by Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment after it acquired the assets of Sonar Entertainment.

David Ellender, the former head of Sonar, subsequently became CEO of Halcyon, which produces projects such as Hunters for Amazon Prime, Mr Mercedes for Peacock and Mysterious Benedicts Society for Disney.

For the Hemingway adaptation, Halcyon said it is working closely with the American author’s estate. The prodco is developing the adaptation with Pablo and Juan de Dios Larrain’s Fabula, which is one of the producers on Apple TV+’s recently announced Spanish-language original Midnight Family.

On its reimagining of Dinotopia, Halcyon is working with veteran family entertainment producer Jordan Kerner, whose credits include Clifford the Big Red Dog, The Mighty Ducks, George of the Jungle, Smurfs and Charlotte’s Web. Gurney’s illustrated fantasy books were previously adapted as a movie and series for ABC/Disney in the 90s.

Also on its slate is Under The Wave at Waimea, a series based on author Paul Theroux’s 2021 novel of the same name. Kern Nunn, who co-created the 2007 HBO drama John From Cincinnati, is penning the adaptation, with Halcyon producing alongside Stone Village Pictures (Las Vegas, Station Eleven, Lincoln Lawyer).

Halcyon plans to take the projects out to broadcasters in the coming months.

The prodco is also working on a limited series penned by American crime fiction writer James Ellroy (The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, LA Confidential). The project, from showrunner Ed Decter (Shadowhunters), Stewart Till (House of Sand & Fog) and Richard Potter (Scream), follows a jewel heist that turns into a robbery and homicide and engulfs Beverly Hills.

Also in the works is Death Line, a remake of the 1972 horror movie from original filmmaker Gary Sherman (Raw Meat, Vice Squad). The new project will see Sherman team up with filmmaker, author, musician and comedian Jeremy Dyson (League of Gentlemen, Ghost Stories).

Halcyon said the goal of the project is to “create a franchise that honours the original movie and establishes a ‘missing persons’ franchise that makes the subway and streets of London uncomfortably scary all over again.”

“Our strong 2022 slate will position us for success as we look to produce, distribute and finance high-end projects that tap some of today’s most talented creatives,” said Ellender.