Serial is ready to hook television fans too: Fox 21 plans to base TV series on the podcast

The hit podcast Serial is soon to be a TV series — and likely a popular one at that. Fox 21 Television Studios is working with Chris Miller and Phil Lord to develop a series based on the podcast, according to Deadline.

Apparently, Lord and Miller, who wrote and directed The Lego Movie and 21 Jump Street, are among the This American Life spinoff’s legion of fans. They secured the rights from the podcast’s producers and found F21TVS more than willing to take on the project. In fact, studio president Bert Salke had already been considering a Serial TV series. With the duo already working with 20th Century Fox on the comedy Last Man on Earth, it was a logical fit.

The Serial TV series won’t be a strict adaptation of the podcast’s first season, which explored the murder case of Hae Min Lee, a teenage girl from Maryland. It will, however, follow a case (still to be determined), much as Serial does. Sarah Koenig and Julie Snyder, the podcast’s co-creators/co-producers, are onboard for the TV series, and will executive produce with Lord, Miller, Alissa Shipp, Ira Glass, and Seth Cohen. No writer is currently attached to the project.

“From the very first week of Serial’s release last fall, everyone at Fox 21TVS was obsessed with the podcast,” Salke said in a statement. “One year later, thanks to the incredible passion of Chris and Phil, who flew to New York and shared their vision with Sarah, Julie, Alissa, and Ira for what the series could be, we’re moving forward on this exciting project.”

In addition to the Serial TV series, fans also have additional seasons of the podcast to look forward to; Seasons 2 and 3 are currently in the works and will premiere this fall and next spring, respectively.

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Stephanie Topacio Long