Amazon MGM Studios Greenlights Kristen Stewart Limited Series

The Challenger, a limited series about the Challenger space shuttle starring Kristen Stewart, has officially been greenlit by Amazon MGM Studios.

Inspired by Meredith E. Bagby’s book The New Guys, the series stars Stewart as astronaut and physicist Sally Ride, who became the first American woman to enter space in 1978. Maggie Cohn (The Staircase, American Crime Story) is serving as showrunner.

Cohn is also executive producing, alongside Kyra Sedgwick and Valerie Stadler for Big Swing Productions; Stewart, Dylan Meyer and Maggie McClean under Nevermind Pictures; Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey for Amblin Television; Bagby; and James Hawes (Slow Horses, Black Mirror), who is also directing.

“Meredith, Valerie and I at Big Swing have been passionately developing this project since 2017, and we are thrilled to be partnering with Amblin and Amazon MGM Studios,” Sedgwick said. “There is no one better than Maggie Cohn to bring to life the complex story of the Challenger and the new class of astronauts recruited by NASA in the early 1970s, all through the eyes of an American hero, Sally Ride.”

“Sally Ride’s courage and brilliance changed history, and we couldn’t imagine a more powerful actor to bring her story to life than Kristen Stewart,” added Peter Friedlander, head of global television at Amazon MGM Studios. “The Challenger is an inspiring story about breaking barriers, and we’re thrilled to collaborate with Big Swing Productions, Amblin Television, Nevermind Pictures, Maggie Cohn and James Hawes to share it with our global Prime Video audience.”