Amazon Studios has given the green light to a four-hour miniseries to star Javier Bardem as Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes.
The streaming platform has given the long-gestating project, to be created and written by Steven Zaillian and produced by Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television, a straight-to-series order.
Zaillian, an Oscar winner for Spielberg’s Schindler’s List, will base his work on a screenplay written in the seventies by Dalton Trumbo.
Amblin’s Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey will serve as executive producers with Bardem.
Amazon Studios head of scripted series Sharon Yguado said: “Cortes’ epic discoveries shaped the world as we know it today, and through the minds of Amblin, Steven Spielberg, Steve Zaillian and Javier Bardem, we will bring Prime Video members on an exhilarating journey.
“There are few moments in history that shape an entire culture such as Cortes’ story, and this series will be one filled with drama and adventure.”
Amblin Television co-heads Frank and Falvey added: “We are so pleased that Amazon has given us the opportunity to bring this exciting 500-year-old story to Prime Video members worldwide. It is a part of history that had such a significant impact and largely influenced modern day civilisations. With Javier as Cortes, we have the perfect star for this role, and we can’t wait to get started.”
Bardem said: “It is a privilege to tell this epic story – one that is full of drama and conflict within this huge, historical spectacle where two distant civilisations clash at the height of their reign. The best and worst of human nature came to life in all its light and darkness.
“As an actor, there is no better challenge than to serve such a unique project that I have been passionate about for years, and I am thrilled to be working with this dream team of Steven Spielberg, Steven Zaillian and Amazon.”
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