Sam Claflin to Play the Count of Monte Cristo in Upcoming TV Adaptation

Summary

• Sam Claflin, known for his role in The Hunger Games, is set to star in a new television adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo, a story of revenge and betrayal.
• The upcoming eight-part miniseries will be directed by Bille August, and will incorporate contemporary elements to appeal to a new audience.
• Claflin’s career has been on the rise since his breakout role in The Hunger Games, with notable projects including Love, Rosie and Me Before You, as well as his recent role in the hit series Daisy Jones & The Six.

After surprising the world with his leading role in Amazon Prime Video’s hit series Daisy Jones & the Six, Sam Claflin lands his next big part. The Count of Monte Cristo is the upcoming television adaptation of the acclaimed novel by French author Alexandre Dumas, published in 1844. The story, one that has already been adapted on several occasions on the big and small screen, centers on Edmond Dantès, an honest sailor who wants to quickly marry his fiancée and lead a quiet life, enjoying all his achievements.

However, when his best friend Ferdinand betrays him, he ends up imprisoned for many years, away from everything he once loved. Blinded by the anger caused by the betrayal, he returns some time later with a new name to get his revenge.

Variety broke the news on Wednesday that a new adaptation of the novel is in development. The eight-part miniseries will be directed by Bille August (Pelle the Conqueror, Les Misérables), and although it will be set in the 1800s, it will include contemporary elements to connect with a new audience and different generations who are not as familiar with the story.

The Count of Monte Cristo will also star Ana Girardot (Escobar: Paradise Lost), Mikkel Boe Følsgaard (Land of Mine), Blake Ritson (The Gilded Age), Karla-Simone Spence (The Confessions of Frannie Langston), Michele Riondino (The Young Montalbano), Lino Guanciale (Inspector Ricciardi), Gabriella Pession (Those About To Die), and Nicolas Maupas (The Beautiful Summer).

Related: Sam Claflin: Every Adaptation the Actor Has Starred In

Sam Claflin’s Road to The Count of Monte Cristo

Lionsgate

Sam Claflin, began his acting career in 2010. Starting his run with three different TV roles in that year, he made the leap to the big screen in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, where he played Philip Swift. A year later he joined Kristen Stewart, Charlize Theron and Chris Hemsworth in Snow White and the Huntsman, but his big break came in 2013, as part of the cast of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

His portrayal of Finnick Odair, one of the most beloved and popular characters in the entire saga, strongly boosted his career. He returned for the final two installments of the Lionsgate franchise, as well as the sequel to Snow White and the Huntsman. Claflin’s filmography also includes other projects such as Adrift, Charlie’s Angels, Love Wedding Repeat, Enola Holmes, Last Night in Soho and even the acclaimed series Peaky Blinders. This year it was part of the Amazon Prime Video hit production Daisy Jones & The Six, which adapts the novel of the same name written by Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of several literary successes such as The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

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