Film and TV show-streaming service Netflix has been focusing more and more on original, exclusive content of late. It launched its first original series, Lillyhammer, back in February 2012. Then earlier this year, House of Cards debuted too, to much critical acclaim. Netflix is also resurrecting Arrested Development this coming May.
Now, a year after it officially confirmed its plans, Netflix is on the cusp of launching yet another big-name original series, going by the name of Hemlock Grove, an adaptation of Brian McGreevy’s novel of the same name. It will constitute 13, 1-hour episodes.
Produced by Gaumont International Television, the Hemlock Grove adaptation for Netflix is the handiwork of horror maestro Eli Roth (Cabin Fever, Hostel) who directs the first episode and executive produces the rest, and stars Famke Janssen (Golden Eye, Taken) and Bill Skarsgard (Simple Simon, Anna Karenina). Netflix has previously described it as a “gripping tale of murder, mystery and monsters set in a ravaged Pennsylvania steel town.”
Scheduled to premier on April 19, Hemlock Grove is gearing up to be yet another Netflix hit, so TNW took some time out at MIPTV (Marché International des Programmes de Télévision) – a TV industry event held annually in Cannes – to talk to Roth, Janssen and Skarsgard about the upcoming horror series.
Hemlock Grove: The lowdown
A big talking point prior to launch has been this teaser – which shows a quite stunning werewolf transformation, with Janssen watching on in stunned silence (before letting out a little expletive at the end).
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In many ways, this sets the tone and expectations around the upcoming launch, which will see all 13 episodes land on Netflix simultaneously, similar to what will happen with Arrested Development on May 26.
In our interview, Roth discusses the ramifications of launching this way, and how viewers now interact with TV shows differently to when, say, Twin Peaks was broadcast on networks around the world back in the 1990s. Indeed, Twin Peaks was a big influence on Hemlock Grove as Roth notes in this interview, so if you were a fan of Peaks…you may well like Grove too.
Without further ado, here’s the trio’s take on the upcoming Netflix original. Oh, and you can follow all our coverage from MIPTV and MIPCube here
Feature Image Credit – Getty
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