Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar is having a bit of a moment after releasing the well-received “Parallel Mothers” last year starring Penélope Cruz and will be making his English-language debut with Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett attached to lead “A Manual For Cleaning Women.” There is yet another lovely project coming from Almodóvar on the horizon but this time is in the realm of streaming television.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Almodóvar and Apple are teaming up for a television adaptation of his 1988 film “Women On The Verge of A Nervous Breakdown” as the streaming service has optioned the rights to develop a series that will be a mix of both Spanish and English. Noelle Valdivia (“Masters of Sex,” “Mozart In The Jungle“) is set to write and showrun the potential series.
The report also reveals actress Gina Rodriguez (“Jane The Virgin“) will take on the role of Pepa that was previously played by Carmen Maura in the original film that featured a young Antonio Banderas.
If you’re unfamiliar with the Oscar-nominated dark comedy, check out a synopsis:
“When Pepa Marcos’ (Carmen Maura) lover Ivan (Fernando Guillén) suddenly leaves her without any explanation, she embarks on a strange journey to discover why. On the way, she meets a variety of eccentric characters, including Ivan’s son from a previous relationship (Antonio Banderas), his fiancee Marissa (Rossy de Palma), and a Shiite terrorist cell who have been secretly holding her best friend Candela (María Barranco) hostage. It’s a film noir take on the romantic comedy.”
Gina Rodriguez had roles not too long ago in the remake of “Miss Bala” and was part of the main cast in Alex Garland‘s trippy female-centric sci-fi flick “Annihilation.” It’ll be interesting to see who Apple casts in subsequent roles opposite Rodriguez. You can see the trailer for the original film below: