Orlando Bloom is headed back to the world of fantasy in a new series for Amazon Studios. ‘Carnival Row’ is described as a “fantasy noir set in a neo-Victorian city. Mythical creatures fleeing their war-torn homeland have gathered in the city, and tensions are simmering between citizens and the growing immigrant population.” The first season will consist of eight episodes.
Beyond the fantasy element, ‘Carnival Row’ is also a murder mystery, with Bloom playing a police investigator named Rycroft Philostrate who must solve the murder of a faerie showgirl. In addition to starring, Bloom serves as an executive producer on the show.
This project was first announced as being in development in 2015, with Guillermo del Toro attached to executive produce and direct the pilot, but del Toro’s name no longer appears to be attached.
Bloom is, of course, no stranger to the fantasy genre. He first gained recognition as the Elven archer Legolas in Peter Jackson’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy. He reprised the role in Jackson’s ‘The Hobbit’ movies. He is also known for playing Johnny Depp’s sidekick Will Turner in Disney’s ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movies. Additional film appearances include parts in such films as ‘Black Hawk Down’, ‘Troy’, ‘Kingdom of Heaven’, ‘Elizabethtown’ and ‘The Three Musketeers’. He has dabbled in television, though never in a starring role. He has popped up on shows such as ‘Extras’ and ‘Easy’ and in the recent HBO original ‘Tour de Pharmacy’.
Showrunner René Echevarria has a lengthy resumé in television including working as a producer or executive producer on genre projects ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’, ‘Now and Again’, ‘Dark Angel’, ‘The 4400’, ‘Terra Nova’ and most recently ‘Teen Wolf’. He also executive produced non-genre shows ‘The MDs’ and ‘Castle’.
Paul McGuigan will direct the pilot. He previously directed the movie ‘Push’ starring Chris Evans as well as ‘Victor Frankenstein’ and ‘Wicker Park’. On TV, he has directed episodes of ‘Sherlock’, ‘Smash’, ‘Scandal’, ‘Devious Maids’ and ‘Luke Cage’.
Since this announcement has just been made, production may not begin for a bit, so the earliest it could arrive is next fall.
Source: TV Line
