Steven Spielberg Teams with Stephen King for Under the Dome

[Hunter Rider]

http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/11/19/steven-spielberg-teams-with-stephen-king-for-under-the-dome/

We mentioned last week that Stephen King mentioned that his new book, Under The Dome, might end up as an HBO miniseries. Well, Variety now has word that Steven Spielberg and DreamWorks TV have optioned the book and are looking to set it up as a mini series, likely for cable. Spielberg will executive produce. The story is set in a small vacation town in Maine which becomes covered by an invisible force field which causes the residents to fight for survival, in two warring factions.

Here is the official plot description from the book:

On an entirely normal, beautiful fall day in Chester’s Mill, Maine, the town is inexplicably and suddenly sealed off from the rest of the world by an invisible force field. Planes crash into it and fall from the sky in flaming wreckage, a gardener’s hand is severed as “the dome” comes down on it, people running errands in the neighboring town are divided from their families, and cars explode on impact. No one can fathom what this barrier is, where it came from, and when — or if — it will go away. Dale Barbara, Iraq vet and now a short-order cook, finds himself teamed with a few intrepid citizens — town newspaper owner Julia Shumway, a physician’s assistant at the hospital, a select-woman, and three brave kids. Against them stands Big Jim Rennie, a politician who will stop at nothing — even murder — to hold the reins of power, and his son, who is keeping a horrible secret in a dark pantry. But their main adversary is the Dome itself. Because time isn’t just short. It’s running out.

The front of the book features an elaborate town map and list of characters, even including “Dogs of Note”. USA Today called the book “Propulsively intriguing… Staggeringly addictive”, and The New York Times said it was “Tight and energetic from start to finish… Hard as this thing is to hoist, it’s even harder to put down.” And author Neil Gaiman called it one of his “favourite books of the year so far.” The 1088-page book was released on November 10th, and is available on Amazon for $14.50.

Dreamworks is on the search for writers, and will probably begin shopping the project to prospective buyers after the creative details are nailed down.

Spielberg has been trying to be involved in a King production for years. Steven purchased the rights to King’s book The Talisman shortly after the book was published in 1984. The project went through many incarnations, but never went into production. Most recently, Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy announced plans to produce a six-part mini-series based on the book for TNT. The project fell back into development hell due to budgetary concerns.

 

[Ghostvirus]

WOW!

How could this go wrong?

 

[Paroxysm]

http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=331537&highlight=Dome

 

[Nivek]

Hmm, they have never worked together before from what I remember...

Did Spielberg produce Shawshank or Green Mile?

 

[GyLocke]

WOW!

How could this go wrong?

So many ways.
I've only seen Darabont handling Stephen King material well.

 

[Sawyer]

Spielberg.... can you just adapt The Stand, please?

 

[[A]]

Who's behind this Dome thing..? I hope it's not Russ Cargill

 

[Ghostvirus]

So many ways.
I've only seen Darabont handling Stephen King material well.

Your lack of King knowledge doesn't mean this won't work.

 

[:eek:]

Under the Dome on it's way?

Posted: May 21, 2011, 23:56:23
Section: Film » Under the Dome
According to Variety "The River" writer Michael Green is at work adapting the Stephen King tome Under the Dome in preparation for DreamWorks TV to shop to broadcast and cable buyers in a few months.

 

[TwoOfAKind]

Oh hell yeah this book was awesome

Who would you cast as Big Jim Rennie?
If they can cast that character just like in the book they will be off to a very very good start in making a great show.

 

[Rez]

Not too excited by this. For all the characters and length the book is incredibly simple, and not a whole lot happens. The book can be summarized in a short paragraph or so and you wouldn't be leaving out much- there's 5 or 6 setpiece events and then it's over.

It was decent enough to be worth the read, but translated to the screen it seems fairly pedestrian and predictable. Maybe that's exactly what King needs, since almost any of his novels with more challenging narratives get butchered.

 

[ttotheusher]

Oh hell yeah this book was awesome

Who would you cast as Big Jim Rennie?
If they can cast that character just like in the book they will be off to a very very good start in making a great show.

For some reason, when I was reading the book, I kept picturing Chris Noth in the role. *Shrugs*

 

[Victarion]

Psst...Speilberg, I'm still waiting on The Talisman.

 

[Sawyer]

I still have yet to read this one. I've actually been trying to get through the older ones first, before reading King's newer stuff.

 

[UnkillableMick]

Oh hell yeah this book was awesome

Who would you cast as Big Jim Rennie?
If they can cast that character just like in the book they will be off to a very very good start in making a great show.

Ian McShane.

 

[:eek:]

Showtime Moves Under the Dome

Source: Deadline
August 30, 2011



As reported back in 2009, Steven Spielberg and Stephen King are teaming for a television adaptation of King's novel Under the Dome. Now, Deadline reports that Showtime has stepped in as the home for the upcoming series.

The book revolves around the drama that unfolds after an invisible force field suddenly descends on a small vacation town in Maine. As the locals fight for their survival, the town descends into warring factions led by enigmatic characters.

Spielberg, King and DreamWorks' Stacey Snider will executive produce along with DreamWorks TV chiefs Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey. No other creative talent has yet been announced, but that is expected to change in the very near future.

 

[BlackLantern]

IMO one of Kings better novels of the past ten years, and its primarily a character drama so its potential is very very good

 

[Sawyer]

It will help immensely if Mick Garris isn't involved.

Poor Bag of Bones...

 

[Sawyer]

Brian K. Vaughan to adapt Under the Dome for Showtime

Huzzah!!!!

 

[BlackLantern]

Big Jim Rennie - Christopher McDonald aka Shooter McGavin

 

[Project862006]

really wish some of vaughan's work got adapted like ex machina for example would be a great tv series

 

[GoldGoblin]

So will this be a Showtime show in 2012?

 

[Sawyer]

Any new word on this?

 

[Sawyer]

http://www.deadline.com/2012/11/cbs...neal-baer-to-run-niels-arden-oplev-to-direct/

CBS Orders ‘Under The Dome’ Series From Steven Spielberg & Stephen King; Neal Baer To Run, Niels Arden Oplev To Direct
By NELLIE ANDREEVA

In a departure from its signature drama procedurals, CBS has given a 13-episode straight-to-series order to Steven Spielberg and Stephen King‘s Under The Dome, a drama based on King’s bestselling 2009 novel, which will be produced by Spielberg’s Amblin Television. The series will air next summer and will mark CBS’ biggest effort with original scripted fare in the off-season in years with Under The Dome and Unforgettable. Under The Dome tells the story of a small New England town suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an enormous transparent dome. The town’s inhabitants must deal with surviving the post-apocalyptic conditions while searching for answers to what this barrier is, where it came from and if and when it will go away. I hear the project’s writer Brian K. Vaughan (Lost) kept the general conceit and many of the characters from the book but also introduced new characters as regulars and tweaked some details and backstory for the existing ones. I hear King has blessed all the changes. As for the book’s much-talked-about ending, which has divided King fans, I hear the series won’t follow it, and as in success, CBS would like to do another season.

CBS landed Under The Dome in turnaround. The supernatural thriller was originally set up at pay cable sibling Showtime in August 2011. When Amblin sensed the project was not moving forward at Showtime, they asked the network to release it and took it out to the broadcast networks. In an effort to keep the show in the family, Showtime entertainment president David Nevins, who liked the project despite feeling it was not right for Showtime, recommended it to his CBS counterpart Nina Tassler, who was interested. The network subsequently laid the show off at CBS TV Studios, which will produce it with Amblin; attached veteran Neal Baer, who is under an overall deal at CBS Studios, as showrunner; and brought in original The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo helmer Niels Arden Oplev to direct the first episode. The network has history with Oplev — in his U.S. debut, he directed the pilot of the CBS procedural Unforgettable, which coincidentally will be Under The Dome‘s companion on the CBS summer schedule unless the network changes its plans. “This is a great novel coming to the television screen with outstanding auspices and in-season production values to create a summer programming event,” Tassler said.

In further corporate synergy, CBS and sibling Simon & Schuster, whose Scribner imprint published the book in November 2009, will cross-promote the TV series and book in advance of the show’s summer launch with the April 2013 rerelease of trade paperback and electronic editions from its Pocket Books imprint. In addition to the CBS broadcast, Under The Dome will have a multi-platform window available for each episode shortly after the network airing.

Under The Dome has been a passion project for DreamWorks’ Stacey Snider, who nabbed the rights to King’s novel shortly after it was published to strong reviews. She is executive producing the series with Spielberg, King, Baer, Vaughn, Justin Falvey and Darryl Frank. Under The Dome will be distributed domestically by CBS TV Distribution and worldwide by CBS Studios International. Amblin is with WME; King and Baer with Paradigm; Vaughan with Verve; and Oplev with ICM Partners.

 

[Sawyer]

Nothing, guys? Come on... we've got a straight to series pick-up and a director, and nothing?

I am disappoint.