Sonar Entertainment is developing a limited series based on the Stephen King novel “Mr. Mercedes,” with David E. Kelley on board to write and Jack Bender tapped to direct.
The novel revolves around psychopath who commits mass murder by driving his Mercedes into a crowd and the retired cop who makes it his mission to bring him down. “Mr. Mercedes” was published last June.
“This is an amazing opportunity to adapt a script from material penned by one of the world’s most acclaimed and accomplished authors,” said Kelley. ” ‘Mr. Mercedes’ is a great story that will translate beautifully to the screen if I don’t mess it up.”
King, Kelley and Bender are exec producing along with Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey of Temple Hill Entertainment and Sonar CEO Gene Stein.
Bender, an alum of “Lost,” worked with King most recently on the CBS drama “Under the Dome,” also based on a King tome.
“I’ve admired Jack Bender’s work for years, both as a director on ‘Lost’ and, later, ‘Under the Dome,’ where he really caught the suspense element. David Kelley is incredibly gifted. I’m excited to work with these amazing talents,” King said.
The project marks a notable collection of marquee creative auspices for Sonar, which is mostly known for lower-profile cable productions. Stein, a veteran producer and former CBS development exec, joined the indie production banner as CEO last year.
“The incredible talent we’ve been able to assemble is truly a creative dream team,” Stein said.
Sonar optioned “Mr. Mercedes” in a deal with Paradigm, which reps King and Temple Hill. Kelley is with CAA and Bender is with UTA.
