Amazon Greenlights Fantasy Noir Carnival Row

Amazon has ordered the original neo-Victorian fantasy Carnival Row to series.

The eight-episode Amazon original will be produced by Legendary Television and written and executive produced by showrunner Rene Echevarria (Star Trek, Teen Wolf, Castle, Medium). Paul McGuigan (Victor Frankenstein, Luke Cage, Sherlock) is set to direct and executive produce, and Travis Beacham (Pacific Rim, Clash of the Titans) will serve as executive producer and wrote the original script, A Killing on Carnival Row, which appeared on the very first installment of the Hollywood Blacklist in 2005.

Carnival Row is a fantasy noir set in a neo-Victorian city, where mythical creatures fleeing their war-torn homeland have gathered and tensions begin simmering between citizens and the growing immigrant population. The series is scheduled to begin filming in the fall of 2018 for a 2019 release.

“There has never been a series like Carnival Row before,” said Joe Lewis, the head of comedy, drama and VR at  Amazon Studios. “The scope of the storytelling combined with the uniqueness of the world, themes and aesthetics haven’t been on TV before. A simple police investigation will lead us down a remarkable journey in a world where humans and creatures co-exist. We’re so excited about what Rene, Travis and Paul are creating and we can’t wait to bring it to customers.”

“Carnival Row is inspiringly ambitious,” said Lauren Whitney, the president of scripted television at Legendary, “and timely in a way that we could never have anticipated. We are thrilled to have excellent partners at Amazon, and the infinitely talented trio of Echevarria, McGuigan and Beacham as the driving force behind this show.”