This Beast: Kurt Sutter heads to Netflix for feature directorial debut
David Farnor | On 09, Mar 2021
TV veteran Kurt Sutter is heading to Netflix to make his first feature film.
Sutter, who created Sons of Anarchy for the small screen along with its spin-off Mayans MC, cut his teeth writing episodes of The Shield. He made his featuring writing debut with 2015’s Southpaw and now will take the helm for This Beast.
The film is inspired inspired by the Beast of Gévaudan, a true story about a mysterious beast that terrorised a French village in the 1760s.
An 18th-century English village is besieged by a mysterious and elusive beast. Dozens of innocents are slaughtered and the mayhem is driven to puritanical heights by religious fanaticism. The impossible task of killing the beast falls to a lowly trapper who promises he can stop the carnage. But for him this hunt is not a professional mission, it’s a deeply personal one.
Sutter will write, direct and produce the film, with Blumhouse also on board to produce the film for Netflix. Jason Blum will produce for Blumhouse with Carla Hacken producing under her banner Paper Pictures. Executive producers will include Blumhouse Television’s Chris McCumber and Jeremy Gold.
“Bringing my disturbing, familial story sensibility into the Blumhouse world just seemed like something that had to happen. And This Beast is the perfect project for that marriage. And Netflix is the perfect venue for that bloody ceremony,” he said.
“We’ve long been fans of Kurt and his unparalleled storytelling — that’s both visceral and packs an emotional punch. We’re excited that Blumhouse is producing his first feature for Netflix,” said Blum.