Baz Luhrmann’s Re-Edited ‘Australia’ to Debut With a New Ending as a Hulu Limited Series

“Faraway Downs” will include unseen footage from the 2008 epic starring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman

20th Century Studios

Fresh off the success of “Elvis,” Baz Luhrmann announced today that he will reimagine his 2008 film “Australia” into a six-part Hulu series called “Faraway Downs.”

The extended cut, which will debut in winter of this year, will feature new footage from the movie, which stars Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman. It will also include a new ending and updated soundtrack.

“Faraway Downs” takes its title from the Australian cattle ranch that Kidman’s Lady Sarah Ashley inherits after the death of her husband in the film. After cattle barons devise a plan to steal her land, she hires a rugged cattle drover (Jackman) for protection. The romantic adventure film is set during World War II and told through the perspective of a bi-racial indigenous child named Nullah (Brandon Walters), a victim of the government’s family separation policy now known as the “Stolen Generations.”

“I originally set out to take the notion of the sweeping ‘Gone With the Wind’–style epic and turn it on its head. A way of using romance and epic drama to shine a light on the roles of First Nations people and the painful scar in Australian history of the Stolen Generations,” said Luhrmann in a press release. “While ‘Australia’ the film has its own life, there was another telling of this story; one with different layers, nuances and even alternative plot twists that an episodic format has allowed us to explore. Drawn from the same material, ‘Faraway Downs’ is a new variation on ‘Australia’ for audiences to discover.”

“Baz is one of the world’s great auteur storytellers, so revisiting ‘Faraway Downs’ and experiencing his incredible film ‘Australia’ in this unique, new episodic format has been a revelatory and unique adventure,” added Craig Erwich, President, Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment. “We look forward to taking viewers into the ranch and to experience all of the stories that are both held within and continue to unfold there.” 

“Faraway Downs” will be executive produced by Luhrmann, Catherine Martin, Schuyler Weiss, and Catherine Knapman. 20th Television is the studio behind the project.

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