Horror is making a big push to the small screen this year with new TV projects and NBC is leading the pack. They are already working on a Hannibal TV series, as well as a reboot of The Munsters. Now it is being reported that Jonathan Rhys Meyers is playing Count Dracula in a new series.
As originally revealed by Deadline, NBC has given a 10-episode straight-to-series order to Dracula. This means that the series will skip the usual pilot process and we are guaranteed a first season, at the very least. Unlike a number of horror TV projects in development, this is a period piece set in the 1890's:
"Dracula (Meyers) arrives in London, posing as an American entrepreneur who maintains that he wants to bring modern science to Victorian society. In reality, he hopes to wreak revenge on the people who ruined his life centuries earlier but falls hopelessly in love with a woman who seems to be a reincarnation of his dead wife."
This is an early announcement, so keep an eye out for much more information in the near future. There is no release date mentioned, but we don't expect to see the series premiere until some time next year. With this being a straight-to-series order, it will probably take a little bit longer to get the casting and writing locked down.
Starz will also be working on their own Dracula series, which will focus on a fictional account of Vlad's time as a ruler in Transylvania. For more information on that project visit: http://dailydead.com/starz-announces-vlad-dracula-tv-series/