Sony TV Acquires Two Novels by ‘Long Bright River’ Author Liz Moore for Series

EXCLUSIVE: Sony Pictures Television is broadening its collaboration with Liz Moore, the author of Long Bright River. The company has acquired the rights to her novels The God of the Woods and The Unseen World for series development.

Neal H. Moritz and Pavun Shetty from Original Film, who are also executive producing the limited series adaptation of Long Bright River on Peacock, will be executive producers for both new projects as part of their first-look deal with Sony.

The God of the Woods is currently a New York Times bestseller and was recently featured in the summer edition of The Fallon Book Club. In this novel, set in the summer of 1975, 13-year-old Barbara Van Laar vanishes from her family’s summer camp. The disappearance coincides with a glamorous week-long party at the family’s grand estate. Adding to the mystery, Barbara’s brother, Bear, went missing two decades earlier, just before she was born. While a local landscaper, who has since died, was widely blamed for Bear’s disappearance, many in the nearby town of Shattuck have suspicions involving another Van Laar family member.

On the other hand, The Unseen World centers around Ada Sibelius, who is raised by her brilliant but socially awkward single father, David, in 1980s Boston. David oversees a computer science lab, and Ada, a home-schooled prodigy, spends her days there. As the lab gains recognition, David’s mysterious past starts to unravel. When David’s mind begins to deteriorate, Ada is taken in by one of his colleagues. Determined to uncover her father’s secrets, Ada’s journey takes her from childhood to adulthood. The series explores a woman’s rise in the male-dominated STEM field and delves into the emotional bonds we create through technology and with technology itself.

Moore is also co-creating and executive producing Peacock’s suspense thriller Long Bright River, starring Amanda Seyfried as Mickey, a police officer patrolling a Philadelphia neighborhood hit hard by the opioid crisis. As a spate of murders unfolds, Mickey realizes that her own past might be connected to the case.

Nikki Toscano, known for The Offer and Hunters, and Liz Moore serve as executive producers for Long Bright River, with Toscano taking on the role of showrunner. Moritz, Shetty, and Amanda Lewis executive produce for Original Film, Amy Pascal for Pascal Pictures, and Amanda Seyfried also joins as an executive producer. Russell Rothberg and Hagar Ben-Asher, who directs the first episode, are also executive producers. The series is produced by Sony Pictures Television and UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Liz Moore is represented by The Gernert Company and WME.

Source: Sony Pictures Television, Neal H. Moritz, Pavun Shetty, Peacock