Netflix is reportedly moving forward with a new crime limited series from The Night Of creators Steven Zaillian and Richard Price, bringing the acclaimed writers back together for their first major television collaboration since the Emmy-winning HBO drama.
Tentatively titled Ghettoside, the six-episode limited series is expected to draw from Jill Leovy’s acclaimed 2015 nonfiction book Ghettoside: A True Story of Murder in America. Zaillian and Price are writing the project and will executive produce alongside Garrett Basch, who previously worked with Zaillian on both The Night Of and Netflix’s Ripley.
According to reports, Netflix gave the project the green light after multiple scripts had already been completed, although some details surrounding the project and underlying rights are still being finalized. Netflix has not formally announced the series and declined to comment on the reports.
Leovy’s Ghettoside grew out of her years covering homicide for the Los Angeles Times and examines murder and policing in South Los Angeles. At the center of the book is the investigation into the killing of Bryant Tennelle, the teenage son of LAPD detective Wallace Tennelle, and the detectives working to solve the case.
The material would put Zaillian and Price back on familiar dramatic ground.
The pair previously collaborated extensively on HBO’s 2016 limited series The Night Of, which followed a murder investigation and its consequences across the criminal justice system. The acclaimed series received 13 Emmy nominations and ultimately won five awards.
Zaillian more recently created, wrote and directed Netflix’s Ripley, starring Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley. The Patricia Highsmith adaptation received 13 Emmy nominations and won four awards, including Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for Zaillian.
Price has an equally substantial history with character-driven crime television. His credits include The Wire, The Deuce, The Outsider and We Own This City, making the reunion particularly notable for viewers of prestige crime dramas.
Basch provides another connection between the collaborators. In addition to executive producing Ripley, he previously worked with Zaillian and Price on The Night Of.
For Netflix, Ghettoside would add another potentially high-profile limited series built around established filmmakers and literary source material, while also extending the streamer’s relationship with Zaillian following the critical success of Ripley.
The project is still early enough that several major pieces remain unknown. No cast has been announced, and there is currently no reported production start date or Netflix premiere window. Ghettoside is also described as a tentative title and could change as the series moves toward production.
Still, the combination of Zaillian, Price and Leovy’s source material immediately makes Ghettoside one of Netflix’s more intriguing crime projects in development.
More details, including casting and production plans, are expected as the project moves forward.
Thomas Miller is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Seat42F, covering television, movies and streaming entertainment. He launched Seat42F in 2007 and has spent nearly two decades covering the entertainment industry.
