THE BROTHERS GRIMM being adapted for TV

Another day, another movie being adapted for television. Today it’s the turn of The Brothers Grimm, the 2005 fantasy adventure starring Matt Damon and the late Heath Ledger as Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm. The brothers were con artists in early 19th century Germany who traveled from village to village performing fake exorcisms and the like until encountering actual supernatural forces that required them to become real heroes. Basically nothing at all like the real Brothers Grimm who were German academics that famously collected and published folklore during the 19th century. Their work created a rich trove of stories to be plundered, mostly by Disney.

Deadline are reporting that Miramax have tapped original writer Ehren Kruger, who’s been on Transformers duty lately and is also adapting Dumbo for the big screen, to bring the characters to the small screen. The new series will (obviously) be similar to the movie and feature the brothers swashing and buckling their way across Europe while encountering supernatural forces and fairy tale creatures. If it’s anything like 2013’s Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters it’s sure to be a lot of fun. ‘Hansel and Gretel’ by the way, a Brother Grimm tale.

As Miramax’s Executive VP of Film & Television Zanne Devine said when announcing the adaption:

The tales of the Brothers Grimm are beloved around the world and offer an endless well of story and character to draw from. It’s a natural fit for television.

Miramax’s VP of Television Daniel Pipski added:

We reached out to Ehren Kruger and producing partner Daniel Bobker to see if they had any interest in making The Brothers Grimm movie into a TV show and the pitch Ehren came back with blew us away. We’re thrilled to be working with a writer of his caliber.

Kruger himself said:

The original stories the Brothers set out to collect were not for the faint of heart and we’ll be making a show that gets back to those origins and their cautionary, scary, thrilling spirit.

That is certainly true. While nearly everyone is familiar with the Disneyfied versions of tales such as ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’, ‘Sleeping Beauty’ (‘Little Briar-Rose’), the above-mentioned ‘Hansel and Gretel’ or ‘The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids’, the original tales could be very dark and bloody. The Brothers themselves later toned down the violence inherent in the tales to make them more acceptable for younger readers.

If they can create a series that combines the fun of the movie with some of the darker aspects of the original works this could be something to watch.

Last Updated: March 20, 2015