Santiago

New German mini-major Leonine is teaming up with Christian Alvart’s Syrreal Entertainment on Santiago, a modern-day adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ revenge classic The Count of Monte Cristo. The series, which is part of a co-development deal with Syrreal, is the first major TV project from Leonine.

In Dumas’ story, Edmond Dantès, a young merchant sailor, is arrested, falsely accused of treason and imprisoned in a grim fortress. But he manages to escape and plots revenge against all who have wronged him.

The new series is based on a pitch by Adolfo J. Kolmerer and Arend Remmers, the director and writer of 2017 German crime comedy Schneeflöckchen. Kolmerer and Remmers are creating the series together with Alvart, the director of Netflix’s crime series Dogs of Berlin and such feature films as Pandorum and Antibodies. Kolmerer and Alvart are attached to direct the series, which is planned as two, eight-episode seasons.