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Channel 4 Is Working To Make ‘V For Vendetta’ Into A TV Show

Channel 4 Is Working To Make ‘V For Vendetta’ Into A TV Show

But it will be based on the graphic novel, not the movie.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Since V For Vendetta was released in 2006, it has inspired people around the world to don Guy Fawkes mask when protesting against politicians, organisations, banks or the notion of totalitarianism.

The dystopian crime thriller was revered for exploring topics such as fascism, a police state, mass surveillance, ethnic cleansing or genocide and the treatment of minorities like gays and Muslims. Many of those ideas are still pertinent more than a decade since the film's release.

According to Bleeding Cool, Channel 4 is going to turn the graphic novel that the movie was based on into a television series.

Credit: Warner Bro Pictures

Written by Alan Moore and illustrated by David Lloyd, it was first published in the British comic anthology Warrior in 1982 before it was picked up by DC Comics and later turned into a novel. This version of the story is slightly different to the one developed by the Wachowski sisters for the film.

The novel was set in the 1990s, whereas the movie intended it to be more futuristic and was placed sometime between 2028 to 2038.

Moore created the concept in response to Margaret Thatcher's government and the notion of a fascist state and anarchism. He criticised the script for virtually erasing those concepts from the original story and refused to watch the film and didn't want to be credited or receive royalties.

It would be interesting to see whether Moore approves of his novel being adapted for the small screen. Of course, he'd have to sign off on it, but he hasn't been a fan of film adaptations of his work, including Watchmen, From Hell and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

via GIPHY

Moore told the LA Times: "I find film in its modern form to be quite bullying. It spoon-feeds us, which has the effect of watering down our collective cultural imagination. It is as if we are freshly hatched birds looking up with our mouths open waiting for Hollywood to feed us more regurgitated worms."

But a television version of the graphic novel would give the story time to develop. In the film, Natalie Portman's character, Evey Hammond, goes through a dramatic transformation, which is supercut to keep the story moving. That part in particular could be elongated and explored much more thoroughly over several episodes.

The longer format would also provide a platform to explain how the totalitarian system was cemented as well as how the masked anarchist known as V came to be.

Unfortunately, there's no word on when Channel 4 will have the series ready, but it'd be smart for the premiere to be on November 5, Guy Fawkes night.

Sources: LA Times, Bleeding Cool

Featured Image Credit: Warner Bros Pictures

Topics: Channel 4