Alexander Skarsgård to star in Murderbot television show on Apple TV+!

The announcements are coming in hot today. Already we’ve heard that a new trilogy of Wheel of Time movies had found its director, Hideo Kojima and A24 are making a Death Stranding movie, and Tad Williams’ Otherland series is heading to the small screen. Not to be outdone, Apple TV+ has just made its own genre TV announcement…and it’s a big one.

Deadline reports that the streamer has officially signed on Alexander Skarsgård (True Blood, Succession) to star in a 10-episode Murderbot television series. Yes, Murderbot is getting its own TV show!

The Muderbot Diaries are a bestselling and Hugo-award winning series of science fiction stories by Martha Wells, which follow a cynical android who is grappling with finding their place in the universe. Here’s the series description:

"The series centers on a self-hacking security android (Skarsgård) who is horrified by human emotion yet drawn to its vulnerable ‘clients.’ Murderbot must hide its free will and complete a dangerous assignment when all it really wants is to be left alone to watch futuristic soap operas and figure out its place in the universe."

Murderbot is getting its own TV show!

Murderbot has been in the works at Apple TV+ for a while; the streamer first picked up the rights to the series around a year ago, but delayed casting due to the Hollywood actor and writers strikes. In addition to starring as the titular Muderbot, Skarsgård also serves as an executive producer on the series. Chris and Paul Weitz (About A Boy) are writing, directing and producing the series under their company Depth of Field. Executive producers include Andrew Miano (also of Depth of Field), Keith Levine (Phantom Four) and Foundation showrunner David S. Goyer. Author Martha Wells serves as a consulting producer.

According to Tor.com, all 10 episodes of the series have already been written and it’s slated to go into production around three months from now, in early 2024. The latest Murderbot novel, System Collapse, just came out in November, 2023.

The Murderbot Diaries have captivated large audiences with their wit and charm, and with Wells’ thoughtful, compelling storytelling. I know we talk about sci-fi shows of various calibers on WinterIsComing all the time, but believe me when I say that if Apple pulls off Murderbot with Skarsgård, it could be a huge deal. We’ll be watching very eagerly for updates.

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