[worthyoflove]

Welcome to 'American Primeval' Thread #2

Netflix Orders Western Limited Series ‘American Primeval’ Starring Taylor Kitsch From Mark L. Smith, Peter Berg, Eric Newman Netflix has ordered a six-episode limited series titled “American Primeval” with Taylor Kitsch set to star, Variety has learned. The drama series hails from writer Mark L. Smith, whose past writing credits include the Oscar-winning film “The Revenant” and the Netflix feature “The Midnight Sky.” Peter Berg will direct all episodes as the first project under his first-look deal with Netflix, with Eric Newman executive producing under his Netflix overall deal. “American Primeval” is described as “a raw, adventurous exploration of the birth of the American West. The violent collisions of cultures, religions and communities as men and women fight and die for control of this new world – for a land they truly believe is their destiny. The ensemble tells a story of the sacrifice all must pay when they choose to enter a lawless and untamed wilderness.” “We are very appreciative that Netflix is trusting us to take a big swing with ‘American Primeval,'” Berg said. “I’m looking forward to taking viewers into the most dynamic, intense, and heart pounding survival tale humanly possible. We are going into the belly of the beast. Cheers to Ted, Bela, Peter and the entire Netflix team for the support!” Kitsch will star in the series as Isaac, said to be “a traumatized man struggling to overcome his demons and find a reason to live in this brutal and punishing world.” This marks the second limited series collaboration for Kitsch, Berg, and Newman, as they also teamed for the upcoming Netflix series “Painkiller,” which is slated to premiere in 2023. “’American Primeval’ is a portrait of the American West unlike any other – raw, thrilling, action-driven and brought to life by a tapestry of emotionally compelling characters led by the talented Taylor Kitsch,” said Peter Friedlander, vice president of scripted series, US and Canada, for Netflix. “We’re excited to explore new depths of this genre as we grow our creative partnership with the extraordinary Pete Berg at the helm backed by the deft storytelling vision from Eric Newman and Mark L. Smith.” Berg will executive produce under his Film 44 banner, while Newman will executive produce via Grand Electric. Smith is also an executive producer. Kitsch is best known for his starring role in the NBC high school football drama “Friday Night Lights” and also recently starred alongside Chris Pratt in the Amazon thriller series “The Terminal List.” His other TV credits include “Waco” and “True Detective” Season 2. He is also known for features like “Lone Survivor,” which was directed and written by Berg. Berg also directed Kitsch in the film “Battleship,” released in 2012. Kitsch is repped by WME and Untitled Entertainment. In addition to his work with Kitsch, Berg is known for writing and directing the film version of “Friday Night Lights” in addition to developing the TV series. He has also directed films like “Deepwater Horizon,” “Mile 22,” and “Patriots Day,” the last of which he also wrote. He is repped by WME and Hirsch Wallerstein. This marks the second announced Netflix project for Newman in recent weeks. Variety exclusively reported that Newman is currently at work on a political thriller limited series for the streamer titled “Zero Day” with Robert De Niro attached to star. Newman was also an executive producer, writer, and showrunner on Netflix’s “Narcos” and then became the showrunner and executive producer on the followup series “Narcos: Mexico.” He is also an executive producer on the upcoming Netflix series “Griselda,” in which Sofía Vergara will play infamous cocaine queenpin Griselda Blanco, and the hit series “The Watcher.” Newman is repped by CAA, Hansen Jacobson, and Rowe PR. Smith is repped by CAA, Black Bear Pictures, and attorney Mark S. Temple. This is also the second Western series that Netflix has ordered in the past few months. Back in October, Netflix picked up the Western drama “The Abandons” from Kurt Sutter, about a group of families in 1850s Oregon.

Taylor Kitsch - Issac
Betty Gilpen - Sara Rowell
Dane DeHaan - Jacob Pratt
Shea Whigham - Jim Bridger
Joe Tippett - James Wolsey
Jai Courtney - Virgil Cutter

[worthyoflove]

From the previous thread:

Originally Posted by Crazy4books (View Post) If it happened on set then maybe he will give Pete some grief about it in their (fingers crossed) press tour.

I'm actually hoping it did happen on set and wasn't some sort of hockey injury.

[Crazy4books]

Never thought of that but it’s certainly possible. Curious minds really want to know what happened!!!

[SouthernSweetieTX]

Originally Posted by worthyoflove (View Post) From the previous thread: I'm actually hoping it did happen on set and wasn't some sort of hockey injury.

I was thinking on set, but hockey is plausible too.

[worthyoflove]

I think he's generally okayed to play hockey while filming as long as he's wearing a cage. I think while filming Waco he mentioned that motorcycles were supposed to be off the table but he didn't exactly obey that.

[worthyoflove]

I don't want to put this into the universe...but it's kind of already there. SAG has voted overwhelmingly, something like 97% to strike if their contract negotiations stall (I believe those negotiations start today). The Directors Guild is coming to an agreement but SAG, yeah they're standing firm and their contract expires June 30th. This show is due to finish filming on July 5th.

I wonder if there is any way they can push through and get filming done early anticipating this strike otherwise this series is going to be put on hold with five days left of shooting with no actors...

[Crazy4books]

I saw that a lot of celebrities were calling for a vote to strike. Scott even shared it in his stories last week so not a big shock if it actually gets to that point. I can’t imagine Pete not rushing to finish this thing before a strike happens that shuts everything down. Maybe we’ll see some evidence of accelerated filming from the crew leading up to the end of the month. If not, then it seems strange bringing everyone back together down the road to complete a week or two of filming. Would everyone even be available to film again depending on when this is all resolved?

[worthyoflove]

I know that they're pretty regimented in how they film and it is scheduled that way for months because you have casting/availability that is scheduled weeks out, etc. Maybe with the foresight and knowing this is coming they can speed things up, longer days, working weekends.

If they don't get it done they'd have to go back. I think it was just Alec Baldwin that went back to finish filming that movie that production stopped on for like 10 months, so if it's interrupted, they'll go back probably as soon as the strike would end.

[exploreoutdoors]

I would hope they could speed it up, work longer days, to get it done. That would be really unfortunate for it to get delayed so close to the time it’s supposed to finish shooting!

[SouthernSweetieTX]

They’d lose a ton of money having to stop, delay, and start again. Plus the nightmare of getting everyone together again. Speeding up to finish makes sense.

I just asked OM…she said 5 days is a lot to push. Not really realistic at all. So boo.

[Crazy4books]

So if the strike happens then they are forced to stop filming with less than a week to go? Double boo!!! I can see this being a huge pain in the a** trying to get the gang back together to finish a weeks worth of filming.

[worthyoflove]

Definitely not ideal but there are just so many moving parts on a set and filming is meticulously scheduled, so trying to push four or even five days of filming would be tough. I hope that instead of SAG striking this will push the studios to negotiate more quickly with the WGA.

[SouthernSweetieTX]

Originally Posted by Crazy4books (View Post) So if the strike happens then they are forced to stop filming with less than a week to go? Double boo!!! I can see this being a huge pain in the a** trying to get the gang back together to finish a weeks worth of filming.

I mean…it could be like the writer’s strike, where a previously contracted project could still be completed. Because that project wouldn’t be affected by the new strike results…I don’t know. OM isn’t here for me ask her how that works.

[worthyoflove]

I think as far as this looming strike goes all SAG actors would stop working June 30th. Currently filming or not.

[Crazy4books]

It doesn’t seem like there is any movement on getting each side to the table to negotiate so a strike does seem imminent . Didn’t the last strike last 70+ days?