It has been ages since we saw any movement on the proposed DMZ series at HBO Max, but at last, we know it will be moving forward with a limited series.
Warner Bros. announced on Thursday that it is moving forward DMZ, based on the Vertigo title of the same name, as a limited event series on HBO Max. The project was announced in Oct. 2019, but things began to pick up speed in early 2020. Rosario Dawson joined the cast in Jan. 2020, and filming on the pilot reportedly was completed just as the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic began to take off in the U.S.
The project is now moving forward with Ava DuVernay still attached as an executive producer, and she directed the pilot episode. The four-episode series will be showrun by Roberto Patino.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled to bring this epic to the screen with my boundary-pushing partners at WBTV and HBO Max, a sublime cast led by Rosario and Benjamin, and my partner and friend, the inimitable and ever-inspiring Ava DuVernay,” said Roberto Patino. “DMZ offers up an explosive playground which, more than anything else, exalts the resilience of community and the human spirit. I can’t wait to welcome the die-hard fans of the comic books and new viewers alike to this intoxicating, haunting and inspiring world.”
“’DMZ’s’ unflinching story of a country torn apart resonates eerily and profoundly amid our current state of the union,” said Sarah Aubrey, head of original content, HBO Max. “With the powerhouse visionary team of Ava and Roberto at the helm, bringing this critically acclaimed DC gem to life promises to entertain and inspire hope.”
In the near future, America is embroiled in a bitter civil war, leaving Manhattan a demilitarized zone (DMZ), destroyed and isolated from the rest of the world. Leaping off the pages of the popular comic, “DMZ” chronicles the harrowing journey of fearless and fierce medic Alma Ortega (series star Rosario Dawson), who sets out on a harrowing journey to find the son she lost in the evacuation of New York City at the onset of the conflict. Throwing gasoline on the flames of that conflict is Parco Delgado (series star Benjamin Bratt), the popular — and deadly — leader of one of the most powerful gangs in the DMZ. He wants to rule this new world — and will stop at nothing to secure that outcome. In this adrenalized and expansive drama which examines a stark political and cultural divide in American society, Alma must contend with the gangs, militias, demagogues and warlords that control this lawless no man’s land. In doing so, she becomes the unlikely source of what everyone here has lost…hope.
DuVernay shared some photos from the pilot on her Twitter account following the news.
No word on a premiere date for DMZ as of yet.
