- AMC and Sony Pictures TV are developing a six-part miniseries "The Night of the Gun", based on David Carr's memoir of the same name. Bob Odenkirk has been cast as the New York Times columnist, who passed away in February 2015, AceShowbiz reports.
Shawn Ryan ("The Shield") is attached to write alongside Eileen Myers ("Mad Dogs"). Odenkirk, Ryan and Myers are also executive producing with Marc Provissiero of Odenkirk-Provissiero and Joshua Astrachan of Animal Kingdom, which originated the project.
Odenkirk said in a statement, "I read David's story, 'The Night of the Gun', when it came out and was wildly entertained by his saga. It's a story of survival filled with pain, crack, journalistic righteousness, abandoned cars, crooks, lies, and then there's the two little girls who saved his life; it's overstuffed with humanity. Shawn Ryan is the man to explore this real anti-hero story. I hope to do justice to David's intellect and his scrappy nature. It's gonna be crazy... if we do it right."
Ryan added, " 'The Night of the Gun' is an incredible tale of a journalist's search for the truth about the most painful subject of his career - himself. David Carr's autobiography is a searing, hysterical look at the demon of addiction and his journey from the crack pipe to esteemed columnist for The New York Times. I couldn't be more honored to help bring his story to life, especially with the immensely talented Bob Odenkirk as an actor and creative partner."
Joel Stillerman, president of original programming and development for AMC and SundanceTV, said, "David Carr's work as a journalist was uncompromising, enlightening, and most of all, always driven by a fundamental quest for the truth. When he turned those skills and values around to focus on his own life as an addict, the result was a stunningly original, compelling and important piece of journalism the likes of which the world had never seen - a simultaneously heartbreaking, funny, and inspirational account that redefined the idea of telling a personal story."
"Shawn Ryan, Bob Odenkirk, and the incredible team behind this have embraced all the things that David would have loved as a storyteller, and crafted a vision for 'The Night of the Gun' that we hope will be as timeless as David's book," Stillerman added.
Odenkirk is starring on AMC's "Better Call Saul", reprising his role as the criminal lawyer Jimmy McGill a.k.a. Saul Goodman on Vince Gilligan's "Breaking Bad".
