Yesterday, it was announced that the BBC, in association with Weinstein Television, will produce a six-part adaptation of the Victor Hugo classic Les Misérables. The series is set to be written by multi-award winning screenwriter Andrew Davies, and is due to be aired in 2017.
This series comes following the success of War and Peace earlier this year, and looks to provide a more in-depth retelling of Les Misérables than previous adaptations, such as the musical. This is the first time the story is being given the chance to be told over the space of six hours, and Davies has commented that he is: “thrilled to have the opportunity of doing real justice by Victor Hugo at last”.
Charlotte Moore, director of content at the BBC has said that viewers can expect a: “multi-layered retelling of Victor Hugo’s masterpiece” whilst Harvey Weinstein has said that this version will be very different to the musical, instead offering an: “intense and serious drama that will provide contemporary relevance.”
In an age of political unrest, the narrative of Les Misérables has more power and relevance than ever, and the producers hope to bring this story set in revolutionary France to a modern audience with a powerful focus. This tale of redemption and healing and rising up will be explored in great depth, and hopefully will bring even more people to love this story.
A non- musical adaptation of Les Misérables has not been seen since the 1998 film, starring Liam Neeson as Jean Valjean and Geoffrey Rush as Javert.
Watch the trailer for the acclaimed worldwide musical version, which recently celebrated its 30th birthday, below:
