Indian actor Aditya Roy Kapur plays the titular lead in the Disney+ Hotstar Indian adaptation of “The Night Manager.”

Based on the 1993 espionage novel by British writer John le Carré, the series follows the night manager of a hotel who is recruited to infiltrate an arms dealer’s inner circle. It was previously adapted in 2016 by David Farr as a BBC/AMC series, with Tom Hiddleston playing the titular night manager and, as revealed by Variety, Anil Kapoor (“Jug Jugg Jeeyo”) as the arms dealer antagonist.

The Ink Factory, which was behind the 2016 adaptation, is also producing the Hindi-language Indian version alongside Banijay Asia. The creator of the Indian version is Sandeep Modi (“Aarya”). When Kapur was approached for the show, he was aware of the earlier production but had not watched it, something he rectified immediately.

“Tom Hiddleston’s performance is wonderful, everyone in the cast did a great job – they were all great performances and very inspiring to watch,” Kapur told Variety. “One has to find their own way into things and make sense of it for yourself. So I had to go through that process like I go through with any film and you end up arriving at a place that, just by virtue of you doing it would be unique unto yourself.”

“While it is a remake, in the adaptation Sandeep changed quite a bit as well. There were newer things and different things, to draw motivation from, and to draw from as an actor, which is interesting for the viewer as well. So, even if you have seen the [2016] series, we do have a few twists and turns and few kinds of surprises up our sleeve,” Kapur added.

Highlights of Kapur’s acting career in Bollywood so far include blockbusters “Aaashiqui 2” and “Yeh Jawaani hai Deewani,” “Fitoor,” “OK Jaanu” and “Ludo.” “The Night Manager” is the second time he has co-starred with Anil Kapoor after 2020’s “Malang.”

“We had a great time on that film and that was one of the reasons for my excitement to get on to this show, because he’s such a wonderful collaborator and so caring,” Kapur said. “For all of us, I think I can speak for Sandeep as well, it was always great to have someone who not only has the experience, but really is invested in caring about how the show’s going and wanting everything to go well.”

Next up for Kapur is “Gumraah,” directed by Vardhan Ketkar, which is due to release in April. The film is a remake of 2019 Tamil-language crime thriller “Thadam.” “I’m playing a double role in that, something I have never done before, which was a fun experience, to say the least,” Kapur said.

Kapur also has plans of acting in the U.S. and U.K. entertainment industries and is looking into securing an agent.

“The Night Manager,” which also features Sobhita Dhulipala (“Ponniyin Selvan: Part I”) in a key role, streams on Disney+ Hotstar from Feb. 17.

Tom Hiddleston met his Night Manager counterpart Aditya Roy Kapur for the first time last night.

Hiddleston, who played Jonathan Pine in The Night Manager for the BBC and AMC in 2016, jumped on a video call with Kapur while attending a lively screening of Disney+ Hotstar’s The Night Manager India in London.

We’ve obtained exclusive images from the screening.

Also in attendance was Night Manager India director Priyanka Ghose and series creator/director Sandeep Modi, who set up the call when Hiddleston unexpectedly arrived with David Farr, the writer of the original BBC and AMC series.

“We went to the London screening with zero hopes of seeing Tom but to all of our surprise he walked in along with David Farr,” Modi told Deadline. “I remember walking inside the theater and telling them that this felt like an ambush because I was showing one of the most loved shows of the world to the people who originally created it.”

Modi said the two-hour screening felt “endless” but was followed by applause and a long conversation with Hiddleston and Farr. Loki star Hiddleston told Modi it was “surreal” to see someone play the role of Pine, a former soldier turned hotel manager who goes up against a ruthless arms dealer. “He felt that Aditya was nuanced, good looking and impressed with the layers that the character had,” added Modi.

Kaupr later took to Instagram to write: “The OG Night Manager watched our show yesterday!” and added screenshots of the conversation.

The Night Manager India launched on streamer Disney+ Hotstar last month and went straight in as one of the country’s most popular streaming series, according to ratings analyst Ormax Media. Roy and Anil Kapoor, who plays the Indian version of Hugh Laurie’s Richard Roper, were also made cover stars of a re-issue of the John le Carre’s original Night Manager novel.

A few weeks ago, we revealed The Night Manager is returning for a long-awaited Season 2, with Hiddleston returning to his role and Farr writing.

Under the codename Steelworks, Deadline understands Season 2 will film later this year in London and South America. Although yet to be formally greenlit by Amazon and the BBC, it is set to receive a two-season order. AMC is no longer the U.S. home.

After the success of the Indian version of “The Night Manager,” The Ink Factory is planning further Indian adaptations of John le Carré novels.

Produced by The Ink Factory and Banijay Asia, the Hindi-language series created and directed by Sandeep Modi and headlined by Anil Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur, emerged as the most watched series ever across all Hotstar specials on Indian streamer Disney+ Hotstar.

One of the most renowned writers in the espionage genre, le Carré, who died in 2020, left behind a legacy of 25 novels, managed by The Ink Factory. They have spawned numerous adaptations, including an English-language “The Night Manager” from BBC/AMC in 2016.

The Ink Factory executive producer Tessa Inkelaar, who oversees the company’s Asia slate, told Variety, “We are in the process of adapting one, which is in a relatively late stage of adaptation and one, which is at an early stage. We’re very keen to bring more le Carré to India.”

The titles are under wraps at the moment. Simon Cornwell, co-founder and co-CEO of The Ink Factory, told Variety, “We’ve found an approach to telling the story, which is really fresh and really contemporary, and it brings something very special. There are many ways in which the Indian adaptation of ‘The Night Manager’ moved beyond the original show, and Sandeep explored areas that we hadn’t explored or hadn’t figured out in the English-language series. And that was a thrilling process. It’s something we can push even further. This one particular story really takes wing, because it’s reset in India, on the fringes of India. It’s a very powerful piece of storytelling.”

“Part of our bigger ambition is to find stories that we can tell in India that speak to people all around the world,” Cornwell added.

Meanwhile, the team is delighted with the massive success of “The Night Manager” in India. Modi, who previously co-created “Penoza” adaptation “Aarya” for Disney+ Hotstar, acknowledges the immense contribution of his co-writer Shridhar Raghavan, who is a le Carré scholar.

“The trick to any story, whether it is ‘Aarya’ or ‘The Night Manager’ is to see how do you take a story, a structure, like a seed that you plant in the Indian soil and see how it grows by itself. How do you make it feel like this story belongs to the land. That was the biggest challenge. And we took the longest time to arrive at the basis of the adaptation, the cultural nuance and the emotional nuances,” Modi told Variety. Modi and Raghavan also updated the story for contemporary, post-pandemic times, bearing in mind that the original novel was published in 1993.

“We had to adapt to it and understand the current times of not just India, but Asia, that we can capture in this wonderful story. Once we had that the characters led the way and whenever in doubt, we had the great book to fall back on,” Modi said. “It was a tricky one to get right, but the ‘Aarya’ experience definitely helped.”

The series is mounted on a grand scale and shot across Sri Lanka, India, the Middle East and Bangladesh. Inkelaar said that the intention was to maintain the aspirational feel of the original novel. “We wanted it to feel escapist. We wanted people to go on a huge journey with the storytelling and with the characters,” Inkelaar said.

[SPOILER ALERT] Most of the principal characters remain alive in the Indian “The Night Manager,” leaving the door open for future seasons. Cornwell says that it is a decision that Disney+ Hotstar has to take.

“We would love to do a second season,” Cornwell said. “There are lots of ideas bubbling around where the story goes from here. We have such a fabulous world, such a fabulous cast, what fun it would be to do a second season.”

“While I’m extremely tempted, because of the humongous response and popularity and love for the show, to keep thinking of it, I don’t want to get ahead of myself, I will say it is a decision which is best taken by Simon and everyone at Ink. They are not just the door keepers, they are the keepers of the le Carré legacy and it has to be in line with what is the le Carré spirit,” Modi added.

Endeavor Content Buys Minority Stake In ‘The Night Manager’ & ‘Fighting With My Family’ Producer The Ink Factory

Endeavor Content has struck a partnership deal with The Night Manager and Fighting With My Family producer The Ink Factory that includes the content financing arm of Endeavor taking a minority stake in the business.

The deal also includes a development fund for The Ink Factory, which also produced Little Drummer Girl, to draw on to produce high-end premium TV dramas for the U.S. market.

As part of the deal, Endeavor Content will have a formal first-look agreement covering both film and TV to sell forthcoming Ink Factory projects internationally.

Endeavor Content and The Ink Factory have a long-running relationship; the former has sold John Le Carre adaptations The Night Manager and Little Drummer Girl internationally.

The agreement also includes a commitment to collaborate in new areas such as podcasts and other digital projects.

Following completion of the deal, Chris Rice, co-president of Endeavor Content, will take a seat on The Ink Factory’s board.

The deal was negotiated by Rod Henwood, Chief Strategy Officer for The Ink Factory, and Tim Robinson, Chief Operating Officer for Endeavor Content. Raine acted as financial advisors to Ink Factory on the transaction and Wiggin served as lawyers on the deal.

“Telling global stories to a worldwide audience is the essence of Endeavor Content, and The Ink Factory is uniquely positioned to create content that does just that,” Endeavor Content co-presidents Graham Taylor and Chris Rice said. “We are excited for this next chapter of continued growth together and look forward to what’s to come.”

Simon and Stephen Cornwell, co-CEOs and founders at The Ink Factory, added: “Today marks a big moment in The Ink Factory’s progress. This partnership with Endeavor Content will help us accelerate our growth as an independent studio and will significantly enhance our U.S. market presence. We look forward to building on the fruitful collaboration we have had with Endeavor Content since their inception as our sales partner on The Night Manager, and we are excited to enter the new decade with Chris, Graham and their brilliant team at our sides.”

The Ink Factory and Marc Platt Prods. are joining forces to adapt “We Were Never Here,” the highly anticipated novel from Lara Prescott based on events surrounding the publication of Boris Pasternak’s “Doctor Zhivago.”

The project sets up a high-caliber partnership between The Ink Factory, the team behind BBC and AMC series “The Night Manager” and the upcoming “The Little Drummer Girl,” and Platt, the Oscar-nominated producer of “La La Land” and “Bridge of Spies.” The partners have just sealed the deal for the book and are now assessing whether it will be a movie or series adaptation.

“We Were Never Here” is a thriller and love story set in the 1950s, during the Cold War. It centers on a CIA plan to engineer the publication of “Doctor Zhivago” in Pasternak’s home country of Russia. The authorities there had ordered the manuscript destroyed and the book banned because of themes they considered critical of the regime. Key characters include Pasternak’s mistress and muse, Olga Ivinskaya, and Irina, a young CIA recruit.

“I’m thrilled by the interest in adapting my novel,” said Prescott. “And I’m such a huge fan of The Ink Factory, Marc Platt, and Adam Seigel. I know the story is in excellent hands.”

The book is creating a buzz ahead of publication. It has been sold in 25 countries, and will be published in the fall by Knopf in the U.S. and Hutchinson in the U.K. “In its ambition, scope and execution, ‘We Were Never Here’ is a remarkable novel by any standards, and as a first novel, breathtaking,” said Stephen Cornwell, co-CEO at The Ink Factory. “The greatest spy stories are also great love stories. Lara’s wonderful book delivers on all that promise and more.”

Marc Platt Prods. president Adam Siegel added that, “While ‘We Were Never Here’ thrillingly tells the untold story behind the publication of ‘Doctor Zhivago’ – a story involving a recently declassified CIA mission and the truth behind one of the greatest and most well-known love stories of all time – at the center of Lara Prescott’s unforgettable novel is the audacious idea that a piece of art can change the world.”

APA’s Lucy Stille represents film and television rights to the book and put the deal together with The Ink Factory and Marc Platt Prods. The deal was negotiated by Stille alongside Jeff Kleinman and Jamie Chambliss at Folio Literary Management, and by Yogita Puri for The Ink Factory.

The acclaimed BBC miniseries “The Night Manager,” based on the novel by John LeCarre, was a big winner this, landing 12 Emmy nominations.

The BBC’s slick adaptation of John le Carré’s thriller The Night Manager has swept the Emmys, earning Tom Hiddleston his first nomination for his portrayal of the ruthless Jonathan Pine.

The six-part series, adapted by David Farr and brought into the world of modern warfare, was showered with 12 nominations, including best limited series. Hiddleston picked up a nomination for best actor in a limited series, pitting him against fellow Brits Idris Elba for Luther and Benedict Cumberbatch for Sherlock.

To prepare for the role, Hiddleston, 34, spent his nights shadowing the night manager of the five-star Rosewood Hotel in London. Hugh Laurie and Olivia Colman picked up supporting actor nominations for their roles as heartless arms dealer Richard Roper and incorruptible intelligence agent Angela Burr who pursues him relentlessly.

Read the rest of the article on The Guardian.

Visit the official Emmy website for a full list of all 12 nominations.

Director: Susanne Bier
Screenplay: David Farr
Starring: Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston, Olivia Colman, Tom Hollander, Elizabeth Debicki
Based on the novel by John le Carré 
Major six-part television drama
Developed with the BBC and AMC 
Released by: AMC 19 April 2016 (US)/ BBC 21 February 2016 (UK)

It was a fantastic evening for the The Night Manager at the Golden Globe Awards, taking home awards in three categories:

Tom Hiddleston
Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television

Olivia Colman
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Hugh Laurie
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Congratulations to all the winners.

 

 

 

GOLDEN GLOBE(S)®, HOLLYWOOD FOREIGN PRESS ASSOCIATION® and GOLDEN GLOBE® statuette design mark are the registered trademarks and service marks and the GOLDEN GLOBE® statuette the copyrighted property of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Copyright © Hollywood Foreign Press Association. All rights reserved.

An increase in funding means greater focus on creative and global partnerships .

The Night Manager producer The Ink Factory has secured $180m in funding as it looks to step up its development and production capabilities. The company has struck a combination of deals including equity investment as well as a slate financing arrangement.

The deals will allow The Ink Factory, run by Co-CEO’s Simon and Stephen Cornwell, to become an independent global studio.

It has closed a second round of equity financing with its first round investors, as well as an equity co-investment partnership with 127 Wall Productions and a slate financing deal with Natixis Coficiné, which cash flowed The Night Manager.

Hotel Artemis, the Drew Pearce-directed crime thriller that stars Jodie Foster, Jeff Goldblum, Sterling K. Brown and Dave Bautista, is the first project to be financed by The Ink Factory through its partnerships with 127 Wall and Coficiné under the new arrangement. Separately, The Little Drummer Girl, the Florence Pugh-fronted, Park Chan-wook directed adaptation of the John le Carré novel for BBC and AMC, will also be financed through the new deal.

The funding will allow The Ink Factory, which was initially set up to exploit the IP of John Le Carre, real name David Cornwell and father of Stephen and Simon, to expand its intellectual property acquisition activities and accelerate the expansion of the company’s operations in the digital arena from its headquarters in London and Los Angeles.

Simon Cornwell said “We are thrilled to be partnering with 127 Wall to build on the fabulous platform provided by John le Carré’s extraordinary body of work. On top of this, we are already in development on projects with other exciting authors and storytellers. Across the board, we are looking forward to producing, financing and delivering creative, distinctive work across established and emerging mediums. We are also delighted that Coficiné, good partners on The Night Manager, have chosen to extend and broaden our partnership as well.”

Arthur Wang, Co-Chairman of 127 Wall added: “We are delighted to partner with the talented team at The Ink Factory to bring intelligent and engaging stories to TV and movie audiences around the world. We are especially excited by the creative and commercial dimensions of our collaboration, including in the growing markets in our home base in Asia.”

Christophe Vidal, Director of Natixis Coficiné, said: “Both my colleague, Edwige Rolin, and I have much enjoyed working with The Ink Factory on The Night Manager. Natixis Coficiné looks forward to supporting the financing of Hotel Artemis and The Little Drummer Girl, as well as the broader growth of Ink Factory’s slate in the coming years.”

London and LA-based production outfit The Ink Factory has acquired rights to Andrew Michael Hurley’s Devil’s Day, and will adapt the novel into a television series.

The company, run by John Le Carre’s sons Simon and Stephen Cornwell, were behind the award-winning adaptation of The Night Manager.

The deal was brokered by Luke Speed of Curtis Brown Group on behalf of Lucy Luck of C+W Literary Agency. The novel was published by John Murray on 19 October.

Hurley’s debut The Loney, which won the Costa First Novel Award and was described by Stephen King as “an amazing piece of fiction”, is being developed as a feature film by Film4 with The Night Manager’s David Farr adapting.

Devil’s Day is described as a claustrophobic supernatural tale set in a tiny hamlet on the Lancashire moors. The novel follows John Pentecost and his newly pregnant wife Kat who have returned to John’s family farm to mourn the loss of his grandfather. Their arrival coincides with the ritual of Devil’s Day, a potent ceremony which holds a dark significance for the tight-knit community and belies centuries of secrets and superstitions.

The Ink Factory is currently in post-production on Drew Pearce’s Hotel Artemis, starring Jodie Foster Sofia Boutella and Dave Bautista.

Andrew Michael Hurley said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be working on the screen adaptation of Devil’s Day with The Ink Factory. From the first meeting, it was clear that their vision of the relationship between the valley, moorland and the characters matched my own.”

Emma Broughton, head of development at The Ink Factory, said: “Andrew’s stunning novel offers extraordinary potential for adaptation: its beguiling, complex characters, compulsive narrative, and extraordinary evocation of landscape, match absolutely, in sensibility and ambition, our commitment to create brilliant, bold, and thrilling drama.”