Netflix continues to grow its film library as the streaming service has come out on top of a bidding war that will see Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington reunite for the first time since 1993’s The Pelican Brief.
Netflix has landed Leave the World Behind, an upcoming novel by Rumaan Alam, with Sam Esmail, the creator of Mr. Robot and Homecoming, set to write the adaptation and direct it.
The novel will be published this fall by HarperCollins and it “follows a husband and wife as they head out to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a vacation with their teenage son and daughter. When the owners of the rental return in a panic one night after they say a sudden blackout has swept through the city, the couple isn’t sure what to believe. With the TV and internet down and no cell service, the two families are forced into a tense living situation. Themes dealing with race, class, and parenthood are tackled.”
Before Netflix won the bid, several major studio and streamers put in bids for the package, with it coming down to Netflix, Apple, and MGM, with Netflix coming out on top with a deal approaching the financial numbers in the range similar to Apple’s deal for Emancipation, which was over $100 million.
