Matthew Rhys, the Emmy-winning star of FX’s fan-favorite series The Americans, will return to the network for an upcoming TV adaptation of the Dark Hose Comics Wyrd, based on a series from Curt Pires and Antonio Fuso. Rhys will prodce as well as star, alongside Sheldon Turner, Vendetta Productions, and the Disney-owned FX Productions and 20th Television. The actor will tackle the role while also serving as the title lead on HBO’s Perry Mason reinvention, which was renewed for a second season. Of course, with COVID-related delays and Wyrd still being fairly early in development, Perry Mason may be in its third season (or concluded) before FX gets the pilot off the ground.
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Deadline first reported the news. There, Wyrd is described as “the story of the ultimate immigrant, an extraterrestrial in exile. It centers on Wyrd (Rhys) who was sent to earth in an attempt to better understand humanity. When his people don’t come back for him, he’s forced to assimilate – all while investigating paranormal activity and searching for a way home.”
Turner will write the pilot. In addition to Rhys, his wife and The Americans co-star Keri Russell will serve as an executive producer, as will Vendetta’s Jennifer Klein and Dark Horse’s Mike Richardson, Keith Goldberg. and Chris Tongue.
Wyrd was originally produced as a four-issue miniseries from Pires and Fuso, which launched in 2019 with a “James Bond meets The X-Files” pitch. Their description is slightly different from the one FX is going with:
“There are problems, cases, too strange for US law enforcement to solve. Pitor Wyrd is the one who solves them–for a fee, of course. An unaging, invincible detective with a penchant for the strange, Wyrd is the one the government calls when things go very badly and very strange.”
Dark Horse is enjoying a boom in popularity on the small screen, with Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy adapted from one of the company’s best-loved series from the last 20 years. 2021 will see the launch of Coyote — a Michael Chiklis-fronted crime drama coming to CBS All Access — and Hulu’s Resident Alien starring Alan Tudyk.
