Another Phantom of the Opera series is in the works

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Okay, so not one, but two “Phantom of the Opera” TV shows are in the works as Deadline is reporting that the classic tale is getting another re-imagining as a TV series project written by Tony Krantz, directed by French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and produced by Endemol Studios. The good news, though, is that this one sounds much different from what ABC is doing with the character. Based on the novel by Gaston Leroux, which inspired Andrew Lloyd Webber’s blockbuster musical, the TV series will keep the Paris setting of the book but shift the time period from the 19th century to the early 20th century.

Described as a drama brimming with tortured love affairs, sex, murder and mystery among the international jet set at the dawn of the Jazz Age, the Phantom Of The Opera series is set in 1919 against a backdrop of the Paris Peace Conference.

The story centers on a British World War I fighter pilot with burns covering half of his body. He finds himself at the center of a string of murders that threatens to embroil the city’s gathered world leaders. The “Opera” in this re-imagining is an opera house that is home to the hottest nightclub in Paris — think Studio 54 — whose American Josephine Baker-esque headliner finds herself in the cross hairs of the serial killer.

“Phantom of the Opera is one of the most successful pieces of entertainment of all time that has been produced in multiple forms for fans across the globe,” Endemol Studios CEO Philippe Maigret said. “Our combination of exceptional creative talent, complex characters, and a wonderfully re-told narrative will produce a new canvas for a story that has crossed all borders and stood the test of time.”