Let the Right One In TV Series to Star Demian Bichir

Swedish author John Ajvide Lindqvist's debut novel Let the Right One In is about to get new life once again as the vampire tale is on its way to television. Deadline reports that Academy Award nominee Demián Bichir (A Better Life, Godzilla vs Kong) has been tapped to star in the series which has officially been given a pilot order by Showtime. Away creator and Penny Dreadful writer Andrew Hinderaker will write the project and serve as showrunner while Dexter and Homeland director Seith Mann will step behind the camera for the first episode. The premium cable network describes the series as "an elevated genre drama, which is turning a naturalistic lens on human frailty, strength and compassion."

Bichir will play the part of Mark, father to 12-year-old Eleanor, who was attacked by a creature that fled into the night, locking her in at that age for forever and forcing her dad to try and "provide her with the minimal amount of human blood she needs to stay alive." This marks a major deviation from the novel and adaptations of the story, which focused on a young boy that discovered his new neighbor was a vampire stuck at a young age, but whose handler wasn't their father and instead another person (with more sinister intentions).

"The series is both a love letter to the original film, and a story entirely our own," Hinderaker said in a statement. "And casting a true artist like Demián epitomizes our bold aspiration to be one of the most terrifying shows on TV, and one of the most moving."

"Let the Right One In quickly establishes itself as a thrilling, high-stakes drama that asks the question: How far would you go to save your child from the monsters out there – would you risk becoming a monster yourself?" Amy Israel, Showtime's EVP, Scripted Programming added. "Demián Bichir is one of the world's most dynamic and engrossing actors, and his charisma and vulnerability will surely bring Andrew Hinderaker's exquisite script to life, guided by Seith Mann's deft direction. We couldn't be more excited about the potential of this show."

Originally published in 2004, the novel, whose title refers to the need for vampires to be invited inside before entering a location, was adapted into a feature film in Sweden in 2008 by filmmaker Tomas Alfredson, generating critical acclaim upon its release. In 2010 the movie was re-adapted in English with The Batman and War for the Planet of the Apes director Matt Reeves helming the project. That version, titled Let Me In, starred Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloë Grace Moretz in the two lead roles, the later playing the vampiric young girl. Richard Jenkins played the "father" in that remake.

This marks the latest attempt to bring Let the Right One In to the small screen, having previously been in that works at A&E back in 2015 before moving to TNT and then never getting in front of cameras.