Hulu has landed for development The Other Typist, a TV series adaptation of the novel by Suzanne Rindell headlined and executive produced by Keira Knightley. Written and executive produced by Ilene Chaiken (The L Word, Empire), the project, which I hear has a big commitment, comes from Searchlight Television and 20th Century Fox Television.
Set in New York City at the height of the Prohibition era, The Other Typist is a psycho-sexual suspense thriller that turns on themes of identity, class, obsession and misplaced (or misunderstood) desire. In it, Rose, a prim, unworldly police department typist gets drawn into the shady world of her glamorous new co-worker, Odalie (Knightley) but when the ultimate crime is committed, it’s uncertain which of the two women was the more treacherous.
Chaiken, who will write the pilot script and serve as showrunner, executive produces with Knightley, Rindell and 3 Arts’ Oly Obst.
Knightley originally brought the book to Searchlight whose TV division co-produces with sibling 20th TV where Chaiken is under an overall deal. At Hulu, Searchlight TV and 20th TV also are collaborating on The Dropout, limited series starring Kate McKinnon.
Drawing comparisons to The Great Gatsby, The Other Typist was published in 2013 and was Rindell’s debut novel. She is repped by CAA and Emily Forland at Brandt & Hochman Literary Agents, Inc. for publishing.
This would mark the biggest TV commitment to date for Knightley who, with the exception of the 2011 Neverland miniseries, has been focused entirely on features since bursting into the scene with the 2002 hit Bend It Like Beckham. She is known for her roles in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Love Actually as well as Pride & Prejudice and The Imitation Game, which earned her Oscar nominations. Most recently seen in Misbehaviour, which was released at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Knightley is repped by United Agents, CAA, Narrative and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern.
The L Word creator Chaiken is an executive producer on the reboot series, The L Word: Generation Q, which has been renewed for a second season at Showtime, as well as on Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale. She also executive produced Empire for its entire run on Fox and served as showrunner for the first 3.5 seasons.
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