Following a successful pairing on Euphoria, HBO and A24 are re-teaming on Irma Vep, a limited series starring Oscar winner Alicia Vikander that hails from writer-director Olivier Assayas and is based on his 1996 film of the same name.
Vikander will play Mira, an American movie star disillusioned by her career and a recent breakup who comes to France to star as “Irma Vep” in a remake of the French silent film classic Les Vampires. Set against the backdrop of a lurid crime thriller, Mira struggles as the distinctions between herself and the character she plays begin to blur and merge.
Vikander and Assayas will executive produce along with Euphoria duo Sam Levinson and Kevin Turen of Little Lamb, as well as Sylvie Barthet, Ashley Levinson and Stuart Manashil.
“I have been a long-time admirer of Olivier and his work,” said Vikander. “I am very excited for us to work together, and to be a part of the expanded universe of his superb cult classic, Irma Vep. There are a lot of brilliant people coming together and I am delighted to be partnering with HBO and A24 on this special project.”
This is the second TV series Vikander has aligned herself with in as many months, as she just signed on to star in a gender-flipped version of Dial M for Murder in November. She’s also slated to reprise her role as Lara Croft in a Tomb Raider sequel that will be directed by Ben Wheatley. She strikes me as a great fit for Assayas’ style, and though I may not love every one of his movies and haven’t seen Irma Vep, I’m looking forward to this series based on the strength of this pairing on paper.