Paul Zaentz, nephew of famed film producer Saul Zaentz, has revealed that another spin-off TV series based on Milos Forman’s 1975 classic “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” is in the works.
Speaking on indie filmmaking podcast CK Café, Zaentz said: “I’ve signed an agreement with Ken Kesey’s widow to develop a TV series which we’ll make through the point of view of the Chief for the first season. Following the first season, we’ll see what happens to the Chief after he escapes [from the psychiatric hospital].”
Author Kesey famously disavowed the film as his novel was partly told from the perspective of the towering half-Native American patient Chief Bromden (Will Sampson) who pretends to be deaf and mute.
The film entirely followed Jack Nicholson’s convict McMurphy who sent to a psychiatric hospital for evaluation in 1963 Oregon, and encourages his companions to take more control of their lives and defy the tyrannical head nurse Ratchet (Louise Fletcher).
It’s not clear who will be penning the new take. The only TV spinoff to date was Netflix’s prequel series “Ratched” which Ryan Murphy produced and which ran in 2020.
Zaentz’ Teatro della Pace Films label acquired the Saul Zaentz Company film library in 2023, which includes other notable films like “Amadeus,” “The English Patient” and “The Mosquito Coast”.
Source: Deadline
