Hulu has given a straight-to-series order for the Syrian civil war drama “Fertile Crescent,” starring James Purefoy, the streamer announced on Wednesday.
The project centers on Antoine, a young French man searching for his estranged, presumed-to-be-dead sister amid the civil war in Syria. While unraveling the mystery, Antoine ends up joining forces and traveling with a unit of Kurdish female fighters in ISIS-occupied territory. In the process he crosses paths with adventurers and anarchists, spies and innocent victims, providing a “unique look on the tragic events in Syria, and the way they affect the entire world.”
Purefoy will star in the eight-episode series alongside French actors Félix Moati (“The French Dispatch,” “Le grand bain”) and Mélanie Thierry (“La Douleur,” “Au revoir là-haut”), as well as Souheila Yacoub, Joe Ben Ayed, James Krishna Floyd, Dean Ridge, Julia Faure, François Caron and Céline Samie.
Maria Feldman and Eitan Mansuri co-created the series with writers Amit Cohen and Ron Leshem, in collaboration with Xabi Molia. Oded Ruskin will direct all eight installments.
“Fertile Crescent” is produced by Feldman for Masha Productions, Eitan Mansuri and Jonathan Doweck for Spiro Films, Caroline Benjo, Simon Arnal and Carole Scotta for Haut et Court TV, Christian Vesper for Fremantle and co-produced by ARTE France and Versus Production. Fremantle will distribute the series internationally.
“We feel fortunate to write about a world of brave women who change history, and to deal with captivating personal stories while exploring one of the most tragic, heartbreaking events in recent decades. We are extremely excited to work on this show with such a talented, devoted and passionate team from all over the world,” Cohen and Leshem said in a statement.
“From the moment we read the initial scripts, we were blown away and leaped at the opportunity to jump onboard,” said Hulu’s VP of content development, Jordan Helman. “We look forward to partnering with this incredibly talented team to bring this bold and provocative vision to life.”