Netflix Picks Up A Series of Unfortunate Events for Adaptation

Lemony Snicket's popular book series, A Series of Unfortunate Events, was adapted into a film in 2004, starring Jim Carrey. It received decent reviews and did well in the box office (making $209 million worldwide), however was criticized for "not staying faithful to the source material's edgier bits."

Netflix recently picked up the rights for the series to adapt into a full series. Because it will be a television show rather than a film, Netflix can follow each story line more closely and completely. It also doesn't have to worry about MPAA ratings, so it will be able to provide the "edgier bits" that were missing from the film adaptation.

Vice President of original content at Netflix, Cindy Holland, said, "The world created by Lemony Snicket is unique, darkly funny and relatable. We can't wait to bring it to life for Netflix members."

When Snicket (novelist Daniel Handler's pen name) himself heard about this, he said, "I can't believe it. After years of providing top-quality entertainment on demand, Netflix is risking its reputation and its success by associating itself with my dismaying and upsetting books." This is a continuation of the marketing ploy that he's used for the series ever since the first book was published. The back cover says, "I'm sorry to say that the book you are holding in your hands is extremely unpleasant."

The story follows three siblings who are orphaned after their parents are killed in a fire that burns their home. Their evil Uncle Olaf knows that Violet, the eldest daughter, will inherit the family's fortune once she turns 18, so he creates tries several schemes to try to steal the money.

Being a huge fan of the series and also of all things Netflix, I cannot wait to see what they do with their adaptation.