Apple TV Plus went big with their premiere of the Tom Hanks'-starrer Greyhound last week. Barely a couple of days later comes the news that the company has acquired the rights to make Snow Blind, which has Hollywood star Jake Gyllenhaal as the main lead and is to be directed by Gustav Moller.
A report on Deadline said Apple acquired the rights in a six-way bidding process for Snow Blind, which is an adaptation of the Boom Studios-owned graphic novel written by Ollie Masters and Tyler Jenkins. In fact, Ollie Masters used his Twitter handle to share the big news last Sunday.
The movie is currently being scripted by Patrick Ness while Gyllenhall and his partner at Nine Stories Riva Marker are producing it alongside Ross Richie, founder of graphic novel publishing company Boom Studios, and its head of Film and TV Stephen Christy.
- Watch Tom Hanks' movie 'Greyhound' on Apple TV Plus
- Apple TV Plus may soon stream classic TV shows and movies
- Check out the new features coming to Apple TV Plus
So here’s some big news ‘Apple Studios Wins ‘Snow Blind:’ Jake Gyllenhaal Stars, Gustav Möller Directs Graphic Novel Adaptation’ https://t.co/IgFA0KCUKIJuly 11, 2020
What's Snow Blind all about?
Snow Blind is the third high profile Hollywood title under the Apple Studios banner that the company would distribute through its Apple TV Plus streaming platform. It already has "Emancipation" with Will Smith in the lead and Martin Scorsese's "Killers of the Flower Moon" that stars Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio. Then there is also a limited World War II series "Masters of the Air" produced by Steven Spielberg.
The graphic novel tells the story of a high school teenTeddy whose life is turned topsy turvy upon posting a picture of his dad online. He learns that his entire family is on a Witness Protection Program from a man who lands up in town seeking revenge, closely followed by FBI agents.
Why is Apple turning to movie production?
The reports indicated that prospective bidders were given a link with a recorded video of the pitch and an introduction from Gyllenhaal and the director. Given that strict social distancing norms are in place, it appears as though this format could well be here to stay for future bidding processes in Hollywood.
From Apple's point of view, the shift from commissioning third-party production houses to make shows to having Apple Studios in charge of production appears to be in line with the need for creative control that highlights most of what the company does.
This seems to be a planned transition made by Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg, who lead Apple's video programming initiatives since coming on board in the summer of 2017. The duo had served as presidents with Sony Pictures Television since 2005 and were known to have been responsible for several popular shows such as "Breaking Bad", "The Crown" and "Rescue Me."
Other titles that Apple TV Plus is associated with
There were reports that Apple Studios had forked out $105 million for securing the rights of Will Smith's "Emancipation", the story of a slave who escapes from a plantation in Louisiana and journeys North while escaping from hunters. Directed by Oscar winner Antoine Fuqua of "The Magnificent Seven" fame, the movie is slated for a 2021 release.
Scorsese's "Killers of the Flower Moon" is based on the non-fictional work American journalist David Grann which narrates the story around a series of murders of Osage people of Oklahoma in the 1920s following the discovery of oil deposits. It delves into how the newly formed FBI investigates it under J Edward Hoover. The movie is a collaboration between Apple Plus TV and Paramount Pictures.
