BBC, AMC & Ink Factory reunite for le Carré drama

Following the success of The Night Manager (pictured), BBC One, AMC and The Ink Factory will bring in a new series based on John le Carre’s novel The Little Drummer Girl.

The series will be directed by filmmaker Park Chan-wook, marking his television debut. It will go into production in January 2018 and be sold globally by Endeavour Content, the new sales moniker of LA agency WMG IMG.

The Little Drummer Girl will be financed and produced by The Ink Factory with 127 Wall and coproducers the BBC and AMC.

Laura Hastings-Smith (Howards End) will work as producer with Simon and Stephen Cornwell serving as executive producers alongside le Carré himself, Mona Qureshi for the BBC, Joe Tsai and Arthur Wang for 127 Wall, and Wonjo Jeong.

The Little Drummer Girl is set in the 1970’s against the background of rising tensions in the Middle East where actress Charlie prepares for her ultimate role in ‘the theatre of the real’.

The series has been commissioned by director of BBC content Charlotte Moore, controller of BBC Drama Piers Wenger, senior VP of international programming for AMC and Sundance TV Kristin Jones, and David Madden, president of programming at AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios.

Wenger said: “We are thrilled by the extraordinary array of talents which The Ink Factory are assembling to bring this iconic le Carré story to the screen. The combination of director Park’s passion for this title and the huge screen presence of Florence Pugh will make for a real drama event when Little Drummer Girl premieres on BBC One.”

The Night Manager did strong numbers for both the BBC and AMC last year, and was an award-winning, critical hit.

AMC and the BBC are also attached to another le Carré adaptation, The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, which TBI first reported on in July last year.