Well, you know by now that
Starz is one of HOLLYWOOD SPY's favourite channels. They know that we love epic adventure and they give it to us in their shows,
mostly in the amazing
SPARTACUS saga which is getting it's third and final season next year. But what are some other Starz' series coming up in the future?
SULEY MAN'S HAREM
Definitely the most interesting of the upcoming Starz' projects, at least if you ask HOLLYWOOD SPY, is
HAREM mini series which will be putting its lens on the Ottoman Empire. In cooperation with
BBC Worldwide Productions they are developing a potential six-hour miniseries exploring the reign of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent and the rise and fall of the Ottoman Empire. Based on an idea by actress
Gina Gershon, the series will probably be penned by "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe" scribe
Ann Peacock.
HAREM will tell the story of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent, the longest-reigning sultan of the Ottoman Empire who reconstructed its legal system and presided over the fleet's annexation of most of the Middle East. He was also a tyrant who enslaved half of Europe with fear and sword. The story would also revolve around Roxelana, a beautiful young slave girl from Ukraine whose ambitions knew no bounds and whose marriage to Suleyman
kicked off what became known as the "Reign of Women" when she became a sultana. It is interesting that the topic of the six hour series has already been covered in extremely lavish Turkish
MAGNIFICENT CENTURY soap opera, which has had four seasons so far and has become a huge TV hit around the Balkans.
DA VINCI'S DEMONS
An exciting and entertaining mix of a futuristic mind and medieval setting will be seen in
DA VINCI'S DEMONS. Young Brit star
Tom Riley (MONROE and LOST IN AUSTEN) will be playing the brash and brilliant 25 year old artist, inventor, swordsman, lover, dreamer and idealist Leonardo da Vinci during his turbulent youth in Renaissance Florence. He is described as being the Renaissance version of our
modern day Tony Stark as he struggles to live within the confines of his own reality and time and begins to see and invent the future. So a man with lots of modern gadgets living in an old century. Drop dead gorgeous
Laura Haddock (UPSTAIRS DOWN STAIRS,
THE PALACE) will take the lead female role of Lucrezia Donati, the mistress of Lorenzo Medici and lover of da Vinci.
MARCO POLO
Another epic show next year at Starz will be on famous 13th century explorer
MARCO POLO in the form of a fantastical martial arts epic,
chronicling the famous adventurer's early years in the court of Kublai Khan. Acting as the ruler's spy, ambassador and explorer, Marco treks across the Far East and returns with tales of his journeys. In a court filled with political betrayal and forbidden relationships, Marco must use his martial arts training to survive, but it is his ability to enchant Khan with imaginative tales of his kingdom that is often his best tool to stay alive. Wowza, sounds totally like my cup of tea! It will be produced by the
Weinstein company and written and created by
John Fusco (HIDALGO)! The show should have about ten episodes and we are patiently waiting to hear the first casting news!
BLACK SAILS
In the sea of new pirate shows (you remember that NBC is preparing
REPUBLIC OF PIRATES, Sky is preparing
SINBAD, and Fox is doing
PORT ROYALE) Starz will offer us
BLACK SAILS to be produced by famous
Michael Bay for airing in 8 episodes in 2014. They're already preparing the 8 episode show set 20 years before the events in
Robert Louis Stevenson’s "Treasure Island" and chronicling the adventures of Captain Flint, a smooth, fast talking pirate who’ll have a new member of his crew – John Silver. Together, they will fight for New Providence Island. The island is something of a paradise for society’s underbelly. It’s filled with thieves, prostitutes, fortune seekers, and of course, pirates. SPARTACUS
creator,
Steven DeKnight has recently revealed that he had the honour to read
BLACK SAILS pilot and that he loved it so much that he is kicking himself for not coming up with it himself.
