DVDizzy Forum

HBO has come on board as co-producer and distributor of the BBC fantasy drama series His Dark Materials. HBO has partnered with BBC, Bad Wolf, in which HBO owns a small stake, and New Line Cinema to co-produce the adaptation of the Philip Pullman novels, which has an order for two eight-episode seasons from the BBC, as revealed by Deadline yesterday. Additionally, HBO has acquired the worldwide rights to the series outside of the UK.

His Dark Materials, which stars Dafne Keen, James McAvoy, Ruth Wilson and Lin-Manuel Miranda, is believed to be one of the biggest in scope and most expensive British dramas to date. Written by Jack Thorne and directed by Tom Hooper, it is based on Pullman’s acclaimed trilogy of books: Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass, considered a modern masterpiece of imaginative fiction.

The cast of the drama, which started filming earlier this month in Cardiff at Wolf Studios Wales, also includes Anne-Marie Duff, Clarke Peters, Ariyon Bakare, Will Keen, father of young lead Dafne Keen, Ian Gelder, Georgina Campbell, Lucian Msamati, James Cosmo, Ruta Gedmintas, Mat Fraser, Geoff Bell, Simon Manyonda as well as young actors Lewin Lloyd, Daniel Frogson and Tyler Howitt.

The first season of His Dark Materials follows Lyra (Dafne Keen), a seemingly ordinary but brave young woman from another world. Lyra’s search for a kidnapped friend uncovers a sinister plot involving stolen children, and becomes a quest to understand a mysterious phenomenon called Dust. As she journeys through the worlds, including our own, Lyra meets a determined and courageous boy called Will. Together they encounter extraordinary beings and dangerous secrets, with the fate of both the living—and the dead— in their hands.