Blumhouse Television has acquired the rights to Paula Hawkins’ 2022 novella “Blind Spot,” Variety has learned exclusively. Blumhouse and Paper Pictures will develop the thriller as a streaming movie, with a search for talent currently underway.
“Blind Spot” follows Edie, Jake and Ryan, friends with an unbreakable bond. Since childhood, it’s been the three of them against the world. When Jake is brutally murdered and Ryan is accused of the crime, Edie finds herself alone for the first time. Grief-stricken and living in the remote house that she and Jake shared, she is also afraid that the past she tried so hard to leave behind will catch up to her — and with good reason. Someone has been watching and waiting for this moment.
Hawkins is best known for her novel “The Girl on the Train,” which was published in 2015 and adapted into a film starring Emily Blunt in 2016. She is also the author of “Into the Water” and “A Slow Fire Burning.” She is repped by David Higham Associates and WME. WME and Nicky Lund at David Higham Associates brokered the deal for the “Blind Spot” adaptation.
Led by Jason Blum, Blumhouse’s film pursuits have included genre hits such as “Paranormal Activity” and “The Purge, while the company’s television arm has produced series such as “The Thing About Pam.” “Blind Spot” continues Blumhouse TV’s move into the streaming feature space. Along with Paper Pictures, which is helmed by Carla Hacken, the studio is currently in post-production on the movie “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone” for Netflix.
“I’m delighted that ‘Blind Spot’ is destined for the screen, and I believe that in Blumhouse and Carla Hacken, I’ve found the perfect partners to adapt this dark, frightening, character-driven story,” Hawkins said. “I’m a huge fan of Blumhouse’s perceptive and intelligent horror — ‘Get Out’ and ‘The Invisible Man’ in particular — and I’ve loved their TV adaptations, too — I thought ‘Sharp Objects’ was outstanding.”
“I’ve been such a fan of Paula’s and from the moment I read this thoroughly gripping short story, I knew I wanted to make this movie with my friends at Blumhouse Television,” Hacken said.
“‘Blind Spot’ is ripe for Blumhouse to adapt. Paula’s captivating storytelling absorbs you into this taut, suspenseful world where the characters feel very real and the payoff hits,” said Chris McCumber, president of Blumhouse Television.