Samuel L. Jackson has already signed on to star in one TV series for a nascent streaming platform – reprising his Nick Fury role for Marvel’s Secret Invasion for Disney+ – but now he’s got another in the works. The prolific actor will star in The Last Days Of Ptolemy Grey for Apple.
The series is based on the novel by Walter Mosley, and revolves around a 91-year-old man forgotten by his family, his friends, and even himself. On the brink of sinking even deeper into a lonely dementia, Ptolemy is given the opportunity to briefly regain his memories, and uses this precious and fleeting lucidity to solve his nephew’s death, as well as come to terms with his own past.
Mosley will adapt his own book and also executive produce alongside Jackson. The series will be six episodes long, and marks Jackson’s second collaboration with Apple after his role in The Banker.
Mosley has written many books, but one of his best known works is Devil In A Blue Dress, which was adapted into the 1995 noir of the same name with Denzel Washington. Earlier this year, Mosley received the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, making him the first Black male to receive the honour.
He and Jackson should be a good combination, and can likely bond over their equally prolific careers in their respective fields. Mosley has written over 50 books, while Jackson has appeared in over 150 films.
This is just the latest show Apple has commissioned as they seek to make a dent in the streaming wars. The Steven Spielberg–Tom Hanks series Masters Of The Air, the Ben Stiller–Patricia Arquette show High Desert, and Robert Downey Jr.‘s Canadian detective series are just a few of the big-name projects they’ve got in the works.
Anonymous Content is developing this project, which has already been behind other Apple shows such as Defending Jacob and Dickinson, and will also be behind the movie Swan Song, which will star Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris.
Jackson will next be seen in Chris Rock‘s Saw movie Spiral, and he will also reprise his Nick Fury role once again, this time in animated form in the Marvel Disney+ series What If…?
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