The Wire’s David Simon developing Spanish Civil War mini-series

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

As a huge fan of both The Wire and Treme (haven't checked out The Deuce yet), I'm always up for a fresh project from David Simon, so the news from Variety that Simon is developing a new mini-series revolving around the Spanish Civil War is most welcome indeed.

Known as A Dry Run, the series is in early development at this time but is being conceived as a six-hour mini-series, although that number could change as the stories come in. George Pelecanos (The Wire) and Dennis Lehane (GONE BABY GONE) have committed to serve as writers on the series as the necessary funds are being raised. Mainly shot in English, A Dry Run will "follow the Abraham Lincoln and George Washington Battalions, both part of the International Brigade that fought in the Spanish Civil War, from their arrival in 1937 and first bloody battle in the Jarama Valley until their departure in 193," with David Simon saying that the show will offer a "compelling and tragic narrative." Simon added that, "Spanish struggle against fascism and the misuse of capitalism as a bulwark to totalitarianism” represent “the preeminent political narrative of the 20th century and of our time still." In regards to the title, Simon referred to the Spanish Civil War as "a dry run for the maelstrom to come, but more than that, the events of 1936 to 1939 made clear that capitalism – while it may be an elemental tool for generating mass wealth – offers no moral answer to how people can live or how societies thrive."

The Deuce follow the story of the "legalization and subsequent rise of the porn industry in New York’s Times Square from the early 1970s through the mid-1980s, exploring the rough-and-tumble world at the pioneering moments of what would become the billion-dollar American sex industry" and HBO renewed the series for a second season last September.