Kathryn Bigelow Will Direct David Koepp-Penned Adaptation Of Aurora For Netflix
Academy Award-winner Kathryn Bigelow is set to direct "Aurora" for Netflix, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The film is based on the upcoming book from David Koepp worked as a screenwriter for films some pretty impressive films like "Jurassic Park," "Mission: Impossible," "Ghost Town," and "Spider-Man." Recently, he wrote the HBO Max film "Kimi" which starred Zoe Kravitz.
Koepp will adapt his own novel for the production. A quick check on Audible tells us that Rupert Friend ("Homeland," the upcoming Disney+ series "Obi-Wan Kenobi") will be narrating the audiobook when "Aurora" is released on June 7, 2022. It will be interesting to see if he's cast in the film version.
Producing the film are Greg Shapiro, who is Bigelow's longtime producing partner, as well as Gavin Polone, who has worked with Koepp on films like "Stir of Echoes," and "Secret Window," — both of which Koepp directed — according to the site.
"Aurora" is the story of Aubrey Wheeler, a woman in Aurora, Illinois who is dealing with her "semi-criminal ex-husband" leaving her with his "unruly teenage son." There is a power outage all over the world due to a solar storm, and Aubrey has to protect her family and her neighborhood while dealing with her estranged Silicon Valley CEO brother, who is sheltering in a fancy dessert bunker on the other side of the country. There is no information on whether or not we'll see changes from the novel, and THR reports that the story takes on the "collapse of the social order, set against a catastrophic worldwide power crisis." That feels more relevant than I'm comfortable with after a pandemic and in the middle of a war, but I'm definitely interested.
Solar flares and family dynamics
The book has gotten accolades from Stephen King who said, "Fantastic story, a real page-turner. Impossible to put down." Screenwriter Scott Frank ("The Queen's Gambit") said: "There's a reason David Koepp is the most successful screenwriter of all time. It's because he's one of the greatest storytellers of all time. 'Aurora' is up there with his best: scary, funny, and thought-provoking."
Bigelow is known for directing films like "Near Dark," "Point Break" with Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze, and "Strange Days." She directed "The Hurt Locker" which nabbed her the Best Director Oscar, making her the first woman to win that award. The film also won Best Picture, with star Jeremy Renner getting a Best Actor nomination. She was later nominated for Best Picture for 2013's "Zero Dark Thirty" starring Jessica Chastain. Bigelow hasn't put out a film since 2017's "Detroit," starring John Boyega and Anthony Mackie. She did recently direct a scene using an iPhone in 2021, though.