EXCLUSIVE: Disney+ is moving into the contemporary UK thriller space with the greenlight of a series based on Alex Dahl’s parents-worst-nightmare novel Playdate.
The Power of the Dog and It’s a Sin producers Tanya Seghatchian, John Woodward and Nicola Shindler are combining to produce the five-parter, which comes from the decorated trio’s Brightstar and Quay Street Productions and will commence filming in the UK and France over the summer. Palme d’Or nominee Eva Husson is directing and Hijack’s Catherine Moulton is writing. Casting is yet to be announced.
In Playdate, a seemingly ordinary decision turns the world of Elisa, mum to two young kids, upside down. When Elisa’s nine-year-old daughter asks to go on an overnight playdate with her new best friend, Elisa agrees. But when she says goodnight to her daughter, she has no idea that she is about to be thrust into every parent’s worst nightmare, and when Elisa goes to pick her up, she discovers that the beautiful house was a holiday rental, while her daughter has disappeared. What follows is a manhunt across Europe, while Elisa and husband Fred find themselves the object of police scrutiny.
Playdate is American/Norwegian author Dahl’s (no relation to Roald Dahl) fourth novel. It marks a move for Disney+ into the mainstream UK contemporary thriller space, having so far mainly greenlit irreverent pieces such as Extraordinary from Killing Eve indie Sid Gentle and comedy-drama Wedding Season, with high-profile bets A Thousand Blows and Sally Wainwright’s The Ballad of Renegade Nell still to launch. Last week, Disney+ ordered a factual drama from Philomena’s Jeff Pope about Jean Charles de Menezes, the innocent Brazillian national shot in the UK as police hunted down a group of terrorists.
Shindler said Playdate “tells the story of fascinating, relatable and complex women in a situation that is any parent’s worst nightmare,” while Brightstar’s Seghatchian and Woodward described it as a “very rare beast – a thriller that combines beautifully crafted edge-of-the-seat suspense with unexpected plot twists and truly powerful drama.”
Johanna Devereaux, VP of Scripted Content for Disney+ EMEA, added: “Playdate is a brilliantly twisty thriller with a terrifying, instantly relatable hook. We are very proud to be working with celebrated producers, a visionary director Eva Husson and rising star writer on this must-see thriller.”
The series is EP’d by Shindler, Seghatchian, Woodward, Deveraux, Dahl, Husson and Moulton. James Dean (Better) will produce alongside Husson who will direct all episodes.