Gaumont, the powerhouse behind “Narcos,” “Lupin” and “Barbarians,” has boarded “Le Prince,” a period mystery thriller series written by Charles den Tex and Paul de Vrijer (“Hunter Street”).
Currently in development, “Le Prince” will be produced by Gaumont, as well as Stories By, a label launched by France TV Distribution, and Dutch producers Paradise Media.
The six-part series will be driven by a strong female character and will be inspired by the true story of the disappearance of Louis le Prince, the inventor of the first ever motion picture camera.
“Le Prince” unfolds in France, in the late 19th century, a few years before the invention of cinema. Le Prince was a French artist who is believed to have been the first person to shoot a moving picture sequence, years before the Lumière brothers and Thomas Edison. Le Prince mysteriously vanished in 1890 shortly before a planned public demonstration of his camera in the U.S.
Den Tex is an Australian-born Dutch writer whose books include “Identité volée.” De Vrijer is a well-known writer and director known for “Misfit: The Series” and “Hunter Street.”
The show could be in a similar vein as Netflix’s “Lupin,” another show produced by Gaumont and starring Omar Sy as Assane Diop, a character inspired by the world-famous gentleman thief and master of disguise, Arsène Lupin.
Gaumont just struck a long-term slate deal with Paramount Plus to produce several original series in association with Paramount’s international studio, VIS. The French shows greenlit under the pact include “The Signal” with “Lupin” writer François Uzan acting as showrunner; “Desolate Future,” a dystopian thriller set in Patagonia and created by writer-director Lucia Puenzo (“The German Doctor”), who will showrun the series together with her brother Nicolas Puenzo; as well the German comedy-drama “Anywhere” from “Bad Banks” writer Jana Burbach; and the environmental thriller “Impact” from Oscar-winning documentarian Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (“Murder on a Sunday Morning,” “The Staircase” alongside Antoine Lacomblez (“Laetitia”) and Severine Werba (“Spiral”).
