Bong Joon-Ho’s Post-apocalyptic Action Thriller ‘Snowpiercer’ is Now Officially a 10-Episode Series

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In 2018, streaming powerhouse Netflix announced boarding the TV adaptation of Oscar-winning auteur Bong Joon-Ho’s Snowpiercer, a well-received 2013 futuristic action thriller that starred Chris Evans, Octavia Spencer, Jamie Bell, Song Kang-Ho, and Tilda Swinton to critical acclaim. This month, the film finally takes its rebirth in the form of a 10-episode series, which will debut on TNT in the US, then to the streaming platform on May 25.

Based off a French dystopian graphic novel Le Transperceneige by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand and Jean-Marc Rochette, the original film was a dark but insightful commentary on class struggle and social stratification in a post-apocalyptic world onboard a gargantuan train trailing a globe-circling track.

Photo courtesy of Netflix
Photo courtesy of Netflix
Photo courtesy of Netflix

Set seven years after what was called the Freeze, leaving the world into a frozen wasteland, Snowpiercer zooms in on what remains of human life and the grating injustices that persist in the politics of survival. This time, Academy Award winner Jennifer Connelly (A Beautiful Mind) and Grammy-  and Tony Award-winning actor Daveed Diggs (Hamilton, Black-ish) take the lead as characters inhabiting the opposite ends of the train.

Where Evans played the role of Curtis Everett, who would lead a revolution between the lower class passengers of the Snowpiercer, Diggs portrays Andre Layton, a former homicide detective who is deemed a reluctant but integral cog to the brewing rebellion. Connelly, on the other hand, is the ambiguous hospitality head of the Snowpiercer, Melanie Cavill.

Photo courtesy of Netflix
Photo courtesy of Netflix

In the absence of original cast Evans, Spencer, Bell, among others, the series will feature Alison Wright (The Accountant), Mickey Sumner (American Made), Katie McGuinness (Dirty Filthy Love), Susan Park (Ghostbusters), Tony Award® winner and Grammy® nominee Lena Hall (All My Children), Annalise Basso (Bedtime Stories), Sam Otto (Jellyfish), Sheila Vand (Argo), Roberto Urbina (Narcos) and Sasha Frolova (The Interestings).

This upcoming TV adaptation is a co-production of Tomorrow Studios, a partnership between Marty Adelstein and ITV Studios, and Turner’s Studio T, under executive producers Marty Adelstein (AquariusPrison BreakTeen Wolf) and Becky Clements (Good BehaviorAquariusLast Man Standing).

Photo courtesy of Netflix
Photo courtesy of Netflix

Award-winning writer and producer Graeme Manson (Orphan Black) is the showrunner and executive producer, along with Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange), Matthew O’Connor (Continuum) and the original film’s Bong Joon Ho, Park Chan-wook, Lee Tae-hun and Dooho Choi. James Hawes serves as series director and co-executive producer.

This wouldn’t be the first time a Bong Joon Ho masterpiece would make news for getting a Hollywood remake. Green-lit plans of the upcoming Tilda-Swinton-led television adaptation of the historic Parasite, were hotly-debated even before reaching the drawing boards for the production. Bong, with his Oscar-caliber filmmaking, has gained ground among international audiences, and discussions over remakes of his “canonical” work do not normally sit well with his fans. The director, who co-wrote the original film’s screenplay with Kelly Masterson, collected raves for the masterful portrayal of class warfare and social indifference.

Photo courtesy of Netflix
Photo courtesy of Netflix

Allison Wright, who plays one of the train’s first-class attendants in this TV adaptation, shares the world’s fascination for the director. However, she shares with the New York Post that the acclaimed filmmaker, while an executive producer to the series, was a “distant presence”. However, a lot remains to be expected from a series that tackles the director’s commendable cinematic perspectives.

Snowpiercer is set to premiere on TNT in the US and is slated to have a two-episode debut on Netflix on May 25th (3PM, Philippine time), followed by a weekly update starting June 1.

Snowpiercer S1: Main Trailer

Attention all passengers: Snowpiercer drops May 25. Brace yourselves.

Posted by Netflix on Wednesday, May 13, 2020