Amazon audiences will soon see a world controlled by women who can shock the shit of of you. That’s because the company just ordered Naomi Alderman’s book The Power to become a 10-episode series directed by Reed Morano of The Handmaid’s Tale.
First published in 2016, The Power was named one of the ten best books of 2017 by The New York Times, and one of Barack Obama’s favourites as well. It tells the story of a world where women suddenly acquire the power to electrocute people. It starts small but eventually ends up shifting the entire balance of the world, as told via a book within a book, 5,000 years after all this happens.
“The Power is a timely, provocative series that will powerfully resonate with the book’s passionate fans worldwide,” said Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios, in a statement to Variety. “We’re delighted to be working with renowned writer Naomi Alderman, the talented team at Sister Pictures led by Jane Featherstone and the visionary Reed Morano, to bring this thrilling, multi layered series to our Prime Video members around the world.”
Morano was a seasoned cinematographer, with work including Beyonce’s Lemonade, before moving into directing. She’s recently did the film I Think We’re Alone Now with Peter Dinklage but is best known for doing three episodes of the first season of The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu, helping establish that show’s unique visual style. One can imagine The Power will be similarly, well, powerful.
“Naomi’s story is like nothing I’ve seen and made me feel things so viscerally that I have honestly never felt,” Morano said. “I cannot wait to dig deep with Naomi, Sister Pictures, and Amazon Studios into this profound and masterful vision of the complex dynamics of our world reversed.”
The show is likely to go into production later this year.