After more than a decade in development, Hulu abandoned Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio's Devil in the White City adaptation.
Since its release in 2003, Erik Larson's historical non-fiction thriller, telling the story of what many historians believe to be the first modern serial killer at the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago, audiences have been clamoring to see the story brought to life on-screen.
The film rights for the title were first acquired by Paramount in 2007 and then bought in 2010 by actor Leonardo DiCaprio. A film adaptation of the title was in the works with Martin Scorsese set to direct, but plans for that ultimately fell through.
Since then the project has remained on ice. That was, until Hulu expressed interest in seeing it through, ordering a series from DiCaprio and Scorsese back in August 2022.
Hulu Cuts Losses on Devil in the White City
Variety has learned that Hulu is no longer moving forward with the Devil in the White City limited series that was being developed by and executive produced by Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio.
Hulu pushed through a series order for the title back in 2022, with Keanu Reeves attached to star and Tár's Todd Field attached to direct at least one episode. Reeves had since dropped out from the mini-series, but development continued to move forward.
Recent developments included Jude Law and star of Hulu's The Bear, Jeremy Allen White, being in talks to join its cast, but that all was for naught as the project has officially been axed.
According to Variety's report, there are plans to shop the series elsewhere.
Will The Devil in the White City Ever Happen?
For years, fans of the Devil in the White City book have been clamoring for an adaptation of the title, and finally, it looked like they were going to get it. However, that no longer seems to be the case (at least at Hulu).
DiCaprio still retains the right to the story, so it is up to him if he wants to further pursue an adaptation of the title. And with the book being considered by many as a sure-fire hit if it were to be adapted, surely DiCaprio will look elsewhere to see if he can make the project happen.
And if DiCaprio is still interested, then it is likely that Martin Scorsese would be as well. The two have developed quite a personal and working relationship and where one goes, the other usually follows.
While it may be disappointing that this Hulu version of the TV series is not happening, it seems that DiCaprio could easily have a suitor in Netflix or Amazon Prime should he be keen on continuing with this endeavor.
Or perhaps the film version that was originally planned with Scorsese at the helm could be back on the table.
