Evil Series Set for C More

Evil, a best-selling novel from Jan Guillou, is set to be adapted as a series by SF Studios for C More and TV4.

The story centers on Erik, a 16-year-old who is accustomed to violence at home and in school, who is expelled due to violent behavior and sent to a boarding school called Stjernsberg. Yet the violence at Stjernsberg proves worse than the violence at home. Evil is slated to premiere on C More in 2023.

Evil, which commences shooting this week in Vilnius, Lithuania, is directed by Erik Leijonborg and Daniel Di Grado from a screenplay penned by Fredrik T Olsson. Isac Calmroth (Håll andan!) plays Erik. Thea Sofie Loch Naess (Hjerteslag, The Last Kingdom) plays Marja, a member of the kitchen staff at Stjernsberg with whom Erik begins an illicit relationship; and Gustaf Skarsgård (The Emigrants, 438 days, Vikings) plays his father.

Tobias Åström, producer at SF Studios, said: “We aim to create a series that brings out the close and strong emotions, and at the same time, is a great and rich story. We are convinced that this description of violence and oppression is relevant today, but we also want to investigate the possibility of other methods than violence to combat violence. Further, we will show how the school’s violent structures undermine a young, flourishing but forbidden love affair, but also highlight how the two manage to influence each other to break free from the negative patterns they are stuck in.”

Piodor Gustafsson, director of Nordic drama for TV4 Media and C More, added: “Jan Guillou’s novel Evil is constantly relevant, perhaps more now than in a very long time. Breaking violent behaviors requires great individual courage. Examining and questioning masculinity is our responsibility. The series Evil does just that, but it is also a beautiful love story and, in the end, there is hope. We are very happy that we get the opportunity to collaborate with SF Studios and Erik Leijonborg and publish the 2020s version of the successful novel Evil.”