Weinstein Television Acquires Alternate History World War II Thriller SS-GB

Kate Bostworth and Sam Riley will headline the alternate reality WWII adaptation SS-GB

The Weinstein Company today announced that they are acquiring the U.S. distribution television rights to the upcoming alternate history thriller SS-GB from UK-based production house, Sid Gentle Films. Based on Len Deighton’s 1978 novel by the same name, SS-GB  will air on BBC One in the UK and has been adapted for TV by two of the UK’s most successful James Bond screenwriters Neal Purvis and Robert Wade (SPECTRE, Skyfall), directed by leading German director Philipp Kadelbach and executive produced by Sid Gentle Films’ Sally Woodward Gentle and Lee Morris.

SS-GB is set in a 1940s Nazi occupied London, at a time when the Battle of Britain is lost, Winston Churchill is dead, King George is held prisoner by the SS, military rule is a constant, pockets of Resistance continue to present a threat and neighbors spy on neighbors. The series will follow Scotland Yard detective Douglas Archer (Riley) as he investigates what appears to be a simple black market murder, only to find himself dragged into a much darker and treacherous world. What was initially a routine case quickly leads Archer to uncover a web of intrigue involving British atomic weapons research secrets, which the Abwehr is keen to get its hands on. The stakes are high as this knowledge could determine the ultimate outcome of the war.

SS-GB will star Sam Riley (Control, Maleficent) and Kate Bosworth (Still Alice, 90 Minutes In Heaven) alongside Jason Flemyng (The Missing), James Cosmo (Game Of Thrones), Aneurin Barnard (Cilla) and Maeve Dermody (Serangoon Road), as well as German actors Rainer Bock (Inglorious Basterds) and Lars Eidinger (Clouds of Sils Maria).

“I am delighted to hear that my ‘SS-GB’ story will be shown nationwide and available to all my American friends,” says Deighton. “It’s a polished and professional production by people with an unrivalled reputation for hits. It has an outstanding star cast and it’s great to know that The Weinstein Company shares my enthusiasm.”

“SS-GB is a brilliant exploration of ‘what if?'” says TWC Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein. “What if Germany had won WWII? Len Deighton’s novel in the late 70s was an iconic depiction of the potential dystopia that threatens society when a tyrant wins. It’s great to reunite with Simon Vaughan and the BBC and we’re thrilled to be working with Sally Woodward Gentle and Sid Gentle Films. And with Philipp Kadelbach’s incredible visual depiction of this story, there’s room for another series. This is not just a one off. If Tom Hiddleston hasn’t already locked up the James Bond role, Sam Riley will be giving him a run for his money when people see this.”

“We enjoyed being part of the team that brought Len Deighton’s ‘SS-GB’ to television,” add Purvis and Wade, who are also executive producing, “and it is testament to the quality of the show that the Weinstein co have partnered up to take this emotional and thrilling mini-series into America.”

(Photo Credit: Ivan Nikolov / Lia Toby / WENN.com)

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