Our Flag Means Death hires Taika Waititi to direct HBO Max pirate comedy series
The in-demand writer and director will make the pilot for the show when he finishes Thor: Love and Thunder.
Streaming network HBO Max has announced Oscar winner Taika Waititi will direct the pilot for a period comedy series about pirates, Our Flag Means Death, while People of Earth creator David Jenkins will be showrunner.
Our Flag Means Death is loosely based on the adventures of Stede Bonnet, an aristocrat who decides to give up the good life and run away to sea to plunder and steal his way around the globe as a pirate.
According to TV Line, HBO Max original content chief Sarah Aubrey said in a statement: “A series concept like this jumps off the page and you can instantly envision every moment. David and Taika’s unique take on Bonnet’s rollicking misadventures on the high seas, are sure to thrill and delight audiences everywhere.”
An Oscar winner for 2019's Jojo Rabbit, Waititi will direct the pilot after he finishes making the MCU move Thor: Love and Thunder, a sequel to his Thor; Ragnorok blockbuster. The latest Thor has been becalmed by the coronavirus pandemic and is now due for release in February 2022.
Waititi is heavily in demand and besides the Thor movie and Our Flag Means Death, which he will also executive produce, he is involved with BBC Two's What We Do in the Shadows, two animated series based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory for Netflix and Hollywood satire The Auteur for Showtime.
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The New Zealand film-maker may also have to dust off his virtual tuxedo this weekend, as What We Do in the Shadows is nominated as Best Comedy at the Emmy Awards, while he is also nominated for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance, as IG-11 in Disney+ series The Mandalorian.
HBO Max launched in May 2020, but is not currently available in the UK as its parent company HBO has an exclusive first-look content deal with Sky. Some HBO Max series are likely to screen on Sky channels.
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