Starz Orders Original Comedy Now Apocalypse

Starz has greenlit the half-hour comedy series Now Apocalypse, created by Gregg Araki (Kaboom, Mysterious Skin), who will executive produce alongside Steven Soderbergh (Logan Lucky, The Knick).

The coming-of-age comedy series follows Ulysses and his friends Carly, Ford and Severine, who are on various quests pursuing love, sex and fame. Now Apocalypse explores identity, sexuality and artistry while navigating the strange and oftentimes bewildering city of Los Angeles.

Executive producing with Araki and Soderbergh is Gregory Jacobs (Magic Mike XXL, Red Oaks). All ten half-hour episodes are co-written by author and Vogue.com sex columnist Karley Sciortino, creator and host of Slutever on Viceland. Sciortino also serves as a consulting producer.

Starz retains all domestic multiplatform pay-TV and SVOD rights to the series. Lionsgate retains all international and domestic distribution and home entertainment rights.

“Gregg brings an incredibly unique and adventurous story to the Starz brand and we cannot wait for the world to meet the bold, sexy and fun characters of Now Apocalypse,” said Carmi Zlotnik, the president of programming for Starz. “It’s exciting to bring diverse and compelling storytelling to the screen as part of Starz’s ongoing programming strategy to provide premium content to reach underserved audiences.”

“If this isn’t the craziest thing I’ve ever read, it’s tied for first,” said Soderbergh. “We will not be responsible for people’s heads splitting in half when they see it.”