Deadline reports that FilmNation Entertainment TV is developing a limited series based on R.O. Kwon’s famous novel The Incendiaries. Lisa Randolph, who has worked on both Jessica Jones and Star Trek: Discovery, will be writing the series, while Kogonada (Pachinko, After Yang) will direct. Kwon’s own experience of losing his religion as a young man provides the inspiration for the story’s exploration of faith and intimacy in The Incendiaries. The tale centres on Phoebe Lin and Will Kendall, two students at Edwards University in Noxhurst, New York, who meet and develop feelings for one another despite each their troubled pasts.
The tale follows them as they get closer, even while Phoebe is being courted by another student, John Leal, to join a secret organisation called Jejah. Randolph and Kogonada have been linked to the adaptation, but no more cast members have been disclosed as of this writing. Author Kown also offered a comment to Deadline in conjunction with the news announcement, which read: After spending 10 years penning The Incendiaries, I found it quite gratifying when it became an instant success and was chosen as the best book of the year by more than forty magazines in its first week on sale.
Now I’m overjoyed that The Incendiaries joined a team about which I have such high hopes: FilmNation is an incredible company, and Lisa Randolph’s fantastic screenplays bring the novel to life in ways I never could have imagined while being faithful to the source material. For many, many years, Kogonada’s films have been among my favourites. Recently, Randolph has been working as a co-executive producer on the Fox show Prodigal Son. Aside from the aforementioned Jessica Jones on Netflix and Star Trek: Discovery on Paramount+, other credits include shows like Reign on The CW and The Shield on FX. R.O. Kwon’s work captivated me with its startling beauty when I read it four years ago. Since then, I’ve been trying to find it. I’m thrilled to be partnering with FilmNation to share Will and Phoebe’s story with a wider audience and believe they’ll be swept up in this powerful narrative of love, loss, and faith just like I was. The opportunity to work with a visionary artist like Kogonada on a project so close to his heart is “the stuff creative dreams are made of,” Randolph said in a statement to Deadline.
For the hit drama series Pachinko on Apple TV, Kogonada not only helmed the pilot but also multiple episodes. After Yang, a film released by A24 and Cinereach 2021, is also among his previous works. Chloe Zhao is executive producing a number of upcoming projects, including a narrative series on the murder of Vincent Chin with a yet unannounced title. He also gave a statement to Deadline in which he said, “I was immediately drawn by R.O. Kwon’s narrative of class, reinvention, and the loss and radicalization of religion, which seems more pertinent than before.” I’m thrilled to be collaborating with Lisa Randolph and FilmNation on the production of this eerie, revelatory piece of art.
Executive Vice President of Television Production at FilmNation Entertainment Wishmore Entertainment’s Andreas Zoupanos Kritikos will be in charge of the series, with help from executive producers Courtney Saladino and FilmNation Entertainment EVP Television Stefanie Berk. It will be produced by FilmNation Entertainment and Wishmore Entertainment. It is now being shopped around by the two firms. Upon reading The Incendiaries, “we were captivated by the brilliance of R.O. Kwon’s distinct characters and the story’s significant issues,” as Berk put it.
This book delves deeply into how spiritual turmoil and the fervour of young love may push individuals to unspeakable lengths. We’re excited to be working with Lisa and Kogonada, who are the ideal creative team to adapt this novel for television. No new information on the film adaptation of The Incendiaries has been released as of yet.