John le Carré’s The Spy Who Came in From the Cold Set for TV

HOLLYWOOD: Paramount Television and The Ink Factory are developing John le Carré’s novel The Spy Who Came in From the Cold as a limited event series.

Le Carré, who served as a writer along with Paul Dehn on the 1965 Paramount film of the same name starring Richard Burton, will executive produce. Simon Beaufoy, two-time Oscar nominee and Oscar winner for Slumdog Millionaire, will write the adaptation. 

The series will be financed and produced by The Ink Factory in association with Paramount Television and Character 7. Paramount Worldwide Television Licensing & Distribution will handle worldwide distribution of the series outside of the U.K. 

The Ink Factory’s Stephen Cornwell and Simon Cornwell will executive produce with Character 7’s Stephen Garrett. They most recently collaborated on the series The Night Manager, also a le Carré adaptation, for the BBC and AMC. 

“On the heels of The Night Manager, we look forward to developing a further le Carré novel for a global television audience,” said Simon Cornwell of The Ink Factory. “The Spy Who Came in From the Cold is one of the greatest espionage stories ever told. Simon Beaufoy is one of the most brilliant screenwriters of our generation. We are thrilled to be embarking on this extraordinary creative journey in collaboration with them, as well as with Paramount Television and Character 7.”

“Adapting one of the best thrillers ever written is a rare privilege,” Beaufoy said.

“We are thrilled to join forces with The Ink Factory and Simon Beaufoy to bring John le Carré’s riveting novel to life,” commented Amy Powell, the president of Paramount TV. “The level of expertise, creativity and precision behind this series is unmatched and we are excited to be partners in this captivating take on the brilliant world le Carré has created.”

“Simon Beaufoy has been a friend and collaborator on projects both in film and television for more than 20 years, and the prospect of reuniting with him on an adaptation of the greatest spy novel ever written by the man who invented the genre could not be more thrilling,” said Character 7’s Garrett.