Jamie Lee Curtis’ production banner Comet Pictures and Blumhouse Television are developing a one-hour series based on Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta character, a forensic pathologist at the center of 24 crime thrillers, with Cornwell, Curtis, Jason Blum, Blumhouse Television president Chris McCumber and Jeremy Gold serving as executive producers.
Comet Pictures and Blumhouse have secured the rights to Cornwell’s “Kay Scarpetta” literary franchise, the companies said, and are in the process of seeking a showrunner for the series.
“I’ve had the honor and pleasure of knowing Jamie for a number of years, and have come to respect her hugely as an artist and a stellar human being. Blumhouse is a creative force of nature, and I’m confident that Scarpetta is going to make it to the screen in a fantastic way,” said the author in a statement announcing the deal. “To say I’m thrilled is an understatement, and I have no doubt my readers will feel the same.”
“We are so honored to be partnering with one of the most successful authors in history in Patricia Cornwell,” McCumber added. “Kay Scarpetta has been a much sought-after character, for a long time, and we are excited to finally bring her to life on television. We are also grateful to Jamie Lee Curtis for connecting the Blumhouse team to Patricia, and to Patricia for trusting us with her iconic creation.”
One of the world’s top-selling crime authors, Cornwell has written 29 New York Times best-sellers and sales that surpass over 120 million books. Her work has garnered numerous awards including the Edgar, the Creasey, the Macavity, the Gold Dagger and the Prix du Roman d’Adventure, among others. Her “Kay Scarpetta” thrillers are her most famous and widely read series, and the 25th book in the ongoing series, “Autopsy,” is set to release this fall.
“Patricia Cornwell is a bonafide literary trailblazer, and collaborating with her to bring her beloved character Kay Scarpetta to life through the power of television and to introduce her to an entirely new audience is exciting,” Curtis said. “The confluence of Blumhouse and Comet bringing to life a dark, fun and layered work world and family life, spearheaded by the smart and sexy indomitable Kay Scarpetta is going to be a thrilling ride.”
Curtis’ production banner Comet Pictures, founded in 2019, is a film, television and podcast production company currently in an overall deal with Blumhouse. Some projects in the works include: “Mother Nature,” an eco-horror film that Curtis will direct and co-wrote with Russell Goldman, who also serves as director of development for the company; and a pilot based on her best-selling Audible podcast “Letters From Camp” written by Boco Haft, which returns for a second season later this month. Blumhouse Television is known for its horror programming, like “Welcome to the Blumhouse” for Amazon, but has also expanded beyond genre with series such as “The Good Lord Bird” and “The Loudest Voice” for Showtime, “A Wilderness of Error” for FX, “The Jinx” and “Sharp Objects” for HBO and “A Secret Love” for Netflix.