Vishal Bhardwaj to create Indian franchise based on Agatha Christie’s stories

The filmmaker has teamed up with Agatha Christie Limited, which manages the literary and media rights of Christie’s works, for the venture 
Vishal Bhardwaj to create Indian franchise based on Agatha Christie’s stories

Director Vishal Bhardwaj has partnered with Agatha Christie Limited to bring a series of big-screen adaptations of the author's work for Indian audiences.

While Christie’s iconic characters include Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, and Tommy and Tuppence, Vishal is planning to create an entirely new pair of investigators taking inspiration from one of her stories.

The first film will introduce a young heroine who is thrown into solving a murder, and teams up with an unlikely companion to unravel the case. Future films will follow the duo as they continue to investigate multiple murder mysteries.

The script of the film is currently in development. Speaking about their first collaboration in India, James Prichard, the great-grandson of Christie, and Chairman and CEO of Agatha Christie Limited, said, “I’m truly excited at the prospect of developing a new Agatha Christie film franchise in India, and am delighted to be partnering with Vishal, who is a multitalented and visionary filmmaker with a terrific track record for adapting works to create memorable pieces of cinema. He has also demonstrated a real passion and understanding of my great-grandmother’s characters and stories, and I very much look forward to seeing where this project takes us.”

Vishal said he’s excited to create an Indian franchise based on Christie’s stories. “Agatha Christie had tremendous skill in defining emotional chaos, dysfunctional relationships, and the turmoil in her characters while engaging us in a riveting mystery. It is an honour to create an Indian franchise of a pair of young investigators looking to take over the world with their intelligence and charm. ACL have been such amazing partners and we are all excited to be on this journey,” the filmmaker shared. 

Basi Akpabio and Leo Dezoysa will serve as executive producers for ACL on the franchise. The first film is scheduled to roll from early 2021.

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