JESUITS! IN! SPAAAACE!
Per Variety, Queen’s Gambit co-creator, director, and showrunner Scott Frank is adapting Mary Doria Russell’s classic novel, The Sparrow, for FX. Frank is said to be “writing every episode” of the limited series, with Johan Renck, late of Chernobyl and Breaking Bad on board to direct, and Better Call Saul’s Mark Johnson joining as executive producer.
The Sparrow was published in 1996, and was immediately hailed as a modern classic. Set in a near-future, the novel follows a Jesuit priest, Emilio Sandoz, the only survivor of a mission to the newly-discovered planet Rakhat. When Father Sandoz left for his mission, there was talk of canonizing him. But when we meet him, he is mentally shattered, physically mutilated… and don’t even get him started on God.
So, what happened on Rakhat? Where are the rest of the crew? How did everything go so terribly, terribly wrong?
No news of casting yet, but one of The Sparrow‘s strengths is its diverse set of characters: Emilio Sandoz is a Puerto Rican linguist of Taino descent, Sofia Mendez is a Jewish AI specialist from Turkey, married couple George and Ann Edwards are a retired engineer and doctor, respectively, who are essentially later-in-life hippies, and they’re joined by computer scientist and much-needed goofball Jimmy Quinn. Sandoz’ fellow Jesuits could each star in a book of their own. And I haven’t even gotten to the aliens yet. In addition to the casting potential, the work is a dense and moving exploration of faith, trauma, and how sometimes people with the best intentions in the universe can cause problems they never imagined. And somehow it’s also hilarious?
There was one prior attempt to adapt the novel. In 2006 Back in 2006, Brad Pitt’s company, Plan B acquired the rights, and got as far as developing a script, but the project eventually stalled. Hopefully this one will complete its mission!
I absolutely adored this novel, even though it left me emotionally shattered by the end. I’m so conflicted about a TV adaptation of this work…
@1 Same. There are many moments in that book that I don’t really want to re-experience visually.
Scott Frank has a good track record of late. Queen’s Gambit and Godless on Netflix.
Years ago The Sparrow was my first ever Audible audiobook. I decided to start with that over my other introductory title, The Name of the Wind, simply because I generally prefer sci fi over fantasy.
Wow. One of those experiences I won’t ever forget. It’s still in the back of my mind, creeping around.
TNotW helped me heal from that experience but also left a few scars itself.
I know The Sparrow has a sequel but I I prefer to leave the story where it is, and I fear I’ll never get the chance to find closure with Kvothe
Xamblu – read the sequel. It’s amazing and brings so much more to the story. They are two halves of the whole
@5 I appreciate the recommendation, it’s going on my list!
The sequel (Children of God) is also amazing.
“he is mentally shattered, physically mutilated” “And somehow it’s also hilarious?”
I’ve never understood the regard and love for this book. Are people forgetting the rape as torture scenes and references? I’ll admit I don’t remember how graphic they actually were, but the afterimages were pretty severe.
The author must have have some serious anger issues regarding priests and religion.
Why would I want to reexperience anything like that? Hard pass.
I read both books when they first came out & now it’s now & there are some scenes that are still with me, so no, I don’t think I need to experience them again.
I know we’re all supposed to love this book but I did not, enough that I didn’t bother with the sequel. There are some truly grotesque scenes. The moral compass is entirely Catholic, a compass which has, shall we say, a checkered history with helping people find the right thing to do. So here. But contra Sunspear above, I don’t think the author hates priests and religion. I think she wants to convince herself to go back to them, in full knowledge of the horrors they have perpetrated.
@pjcamp: I think you’re right. The author was struggling with issues of belief and the constructs that conveyed them. Reading the glowing love for this book in the past, it almost seemed like it was enough that we get priests in space, with the added benefit of extreme suffering confirming their worldview.
It’s been awhile since I was interested in this topic, so my memory is imprecise, but I think the author converted to Judaism for awhile and then went back to Catholicism. ( I could be misremembering.) I guess at the very least, the book reflected her struggle.
But Ugh, no. Another site a couple years ago recommended this as a summer beach read. Was that critic a masochist? Do those who love this book not feel any cognitive dissonance?
Agree with many others here! Whilst “The Sparrow” may be considered a classic, it left me traumatised – to the point where it’s the only book I can think of that I’ve regretted reading. And I read (and enjoy) a great deal of dark fiction.
Obviously one’s mileage may vary, but there is NO way I want to put myself through that again. Just thinking about the book makes me feel queasy, but a TV adaptation? I worry it would skirt too close to torture porn. Nope nope nope.
Personally, i read both books, and i think they were not worthy at all.
first and most egregious is the idea that somehow catholics can do first contact. The whole colonization of the Americas is overlooked.
Then the idea that somehow this priest is so traumatized, i could have cared less… first contact goes bad, who would have guessed?
I dislike how far so many movie/TV adaptations diverge from their source material, but here I could see it actually being an improvement. I disliked nearly everyone and everything in this book, but it had some interesting ideas and the episodic nature of Emilio’s journey seemed designed for a TV adaptation.
I’ll wait for the reviews to come in before committing to it myself :)