A still from The Right Stuff movie. Image: Warner Bros.
Tom Wolfe’s landmark 1979 book The Right Stuff, famously turned into the 1983 film, is coming back thanks to Leonardo DiCaprio. His production company has just signed a deal to turn the book into a TV series on National Geographic.
Video game writer Will Staples will serve as showrunner for the scripted series, based on the true story of the seven pilots and their families who were at the center of the space race between the US and Russia. The plan is for a multi-season arc, with season one set in 1958. It begins with the pilots doing insane speeds tests in the desert, then explores America’s obsession with space, and finally the group training to become astronauts. As that happens, the newly named Mercury Seven become national celebrities for their heroism and bravery.
“National Geographic gave Before the Flood an international platform, and we couldn’t think of a better partner to bring The Right Stuff to the world,” DiCaprio’s co-producer Jennifer Davisson said in a press release. “The heroism of these astronauts was rivaled only by the country’s fascination with their story; this series uncovers both the adventure of space exploration and the adventure of being unwittingly thrust into the public eye.”
No time line has been announced for the show.
[Deadline]