John Shirley’s The Specialist Books Set for TV Adaptation

Alexander Rodnyansky’s AR Content has optioned the rights to adapt John Shirley’s The Specialist series of books.

Published under the pen name John Cutter, the books served as inspiration for a 1994 Warner Bros. feature film starring Sylvester Stallone and Sharon Stone. The planned TV adaptation will be set in the present day, exploring drone-era warfare.

AR Content, which is in active discussions with showrunners, has secured rights to all 11 books in the series. It will use a similar financing model to the one used for Debriefing the President, a limited series starring Joel Kinnaman that is in post-production.

“I’ve experienced firsthand how modern war is reshaping our world and have felt a deep responsibility to explore its consequences and meaning through storytelling,” said Rodnyansky.“The Specialist is an opportunity to expose and examine a world shaped by remote warfare – where technology has changed the rules of engagement, but the emotional and psychological toll remains deeply human. At the same time, we’re building this series using an international co-production, independent model that allows us to maintain ownership while bringing the story to audiences worldwide.”

Shirley added: “My Specialist books (written as John Cutter), are about one man fighting for justice for other people, other causes, against titanically dangerous institutions of criminality or oppression—in the reborn The Specialist from AR, our hero extends his reach with the power of innovative technology at the cutting edge and beyond. Because science fiction has become reality.”