Chris Cooper is going for the gold with his latest role.
The "Adaptation" actor has signed on for the Discovery Channel's maiden foray into scripted miniseries territory, a gold-rush drama that bears the working title "Klondike."
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Oscar winner Cooper will play Father Judge in the project, which follows two brothers who try to strike gold in the untamed Yukon territory in the 1890s. Billed as a "man-versus-nature tale," the story will track the brothers as they navigate a land that's full of undiscovered wealth, but also ravaged by unpredictable weather and populated by dangerous characters.
Based on the Charlotte Gray novel "Gold Diggers: Striking It Rich in the Klondike," the miniseries is a co-production between Discovery, Entertainment One Television (eOne) and Nomadic Pictures, in association with Scott Free Television. Paul Scheuring ("Prison Break," "A Man Apart") is the primary writer and will executive produce. Ridley Scott and David W. Zucker will also executive produce, along with John Morayniss and Michael Rosenberg for eOne.
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Mike Frislev and Chad Oakes will co-produce for Nomadic. Josh Goldin ("Darkman") and Rachel Abramowitz ("One Angry Juror) will write episodes and serve as consulting producers.
Eileen O'Neill and Dolores Gavin are executive producing for Discovery.
Production starts on location in Alberta, Canada, in March.
Hopefully Cooper remembers to pack mittens.