AMC has ordered pilots for the dramas “Knifeman” and “Galyntine,” the network said Monday.
Both projects will be produced by AMC Studios next year, for series consideration in 2015.
Based on Wendy Moore’s biography of John Hunter, titled “The Knife Man: Blood, Body Snatching and the Birth of Modern Surgery,” “Knifeman is set in 18th century London, focusing on the story of a charming, arrogant, decorum-breaking genius who challenges societal norms to transform his visions into cutting-edge discoveries. A surgeon or “barber” in a time when blood-letting and praying was the norm, John Tattersall is a hard drinking, hard living man not afraid to push the boundaries of modern medicine, even if it takes digging up a few graves to do it.
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When he’s not running his unlicensed operating theater from his home, Tattersall picks up some spare cash by harvesting organs for his physician brother Julian.
Written by “United States of Tara” and “Friday Night Lights” alum Rolin Jones, the “Knifeman” pilot is being developed by Jones and Ron Fitzgerald (“Last Resort,” “Prime Suspect”), with both serving as executive producers.
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“House of Cards” producer Media Rights Capital will also executive produce, along with Josh Donnen and Robert Zotnowski.
“Galyntine,” meanwhile, is a fantasy, action adventure and science fiction project wholly owned by AMC. The pilot will be set in the aftermath of a cataclysmic technology-induced disaster that has resulted in a new society that has eschewed any form of technology. This catastrophic event leaves small numbers of survivors scattered around the planet and forced to adapt to isolation and unique challenges. The pilot will explore a post-apocalyptic world in which humanity has evolved – with some strange detours.
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“Fringe” vet Jason Cahill, who also writes on AMC’s upcoming series “Halt and Catch Fire,” wrote the pilot and is executive producing with Greg Nicotero (of AMC’s massive zombie hit “The Walking Dead”).
David Zucker and Ridley Scott are also on board as executive producers, via production company Scott Free’s first-look deal with AMC.