Here’s another one for the book lovers out there. USA Network announced today its plans to move forward with a dramatized series version of The Rainmaker, based on the best-selling novel of the same name by author John Grisham. The production comes by way of a team-up between Lionsgate Television and Blumhouse Television and will be backed by an executive production team set to include Grisham, Jason Blum, Jason Richman, Michael Seitzman, and David Gernert. This will be the second time that Grisham’s book will receive an on-screen telling, as The Rainmaker was previously given a cinematic turn in Francis Ford Coppola’ star-studded 1997 feature.
As per the logline for USA Network’s The Rainmaker audiences can expect a tense thriller. Read it here:
“Fresh out of law school, Rudy Baylor goes head-to-head with courtroom lion Leo Drummond as well as his law school girlfriend. Rudy, along with his boss and her disheveled paralegal, uncover two connected conspiracies surrounding the mysterious death of their client’s son.”
As of right now, no casting announcements have been revealed for the series version of Grisham’s beloved story, but the original film starred the likes of Matt Damon, Danny DeVito, Claire Danes, Mickey Rourke, and Jon Voight, meaning USA will have its hands full living up to the same stature of casting.
John Grisham’s Other On-Screen Successes
Grisham‘s work with the legendary Coppola wasn’t his one and only rodeo in the entertainment industry, as the author has earned a pretty penny from his books being made into television or feature-length productions. With most of his stories leaning into the crooked side of law and order, Grisham’s first film adaptation is the edge-of-your-seat legal thriller, The Firm, which starred Tom Cruise as an up-and-coming lawyer who discovers conspiracy after conspiracy at his new legal firm. Other popular titles based on Grisham’s works include The Pelican Brief, The Client, Runaway Jury, and – oddly enough – the holiday comedy – Christmas with the Kranks.
In the TV realm, Grisham‘s The Firm celebrated a sequel series (set as both a follow-up to the original book and the film), which ran for one season in 2011. Also in his repertoire of small screen adaptations are titles including The Client (which, like The Rainmaker, is based on the film that came before it) and The Innocent Man, the latter of which aired as a true crime docuseries on Netflix. Throughout all the scripted productions associated with Grisham‘s name, one thing remains the same – the cast includes the most notable names of the time. From Cruise to Susan Sarandon and Julia Roberts, celebrities have lined up to be a part of these remakes of the author’s most famous novels.
As of right now, no further details surrounding USA Network‘s series adaptation of The Rainmaker are available, but stay tuned to Collider for more information.
via Collider