‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ Peacock Adaptation Casts Jonah Hauer-King, Melanie Lynskey & More
Peacock is unveiling the leading cast for its adaptation of The Tattooist of Auschwitz as Jonah Hauer-King, Melanie Lynskey, Anna Próchniak, and Jonas Nay board the limited series which is a co-production between the NBCUniversal streamer and Sky.
The limited series is based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Heather Morris, who will be portrayed by Lynskey in the show. With more than 12 million copies sold globally, The Tattooist of Auschwitz shares the real-life story of Lale Sokolov (Hauer-King), a Jewish prisoner who is given the job of tattooing identification numbers on fellow prisoners’ arms in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during World War II.
One day, when Lale encounters Gita Furman (Próchniak) while tattooing her prisoner number, it’s love at first sight, sparking an unforgettable story told through one man’s memory and experience of Auschwitz-Birkenau. It is described as a tale of the very best of humanity, in the very worst of circumstances.
(Credit: Courtesy of Amazon)
Currently, in production, the six-episode limited series will be directed by Tali Shalom-Ezer and is a co-production between Sky Studios and Peacock with NBCUniversal Global Distribution and All3Media International. Meanwhile, Synchronicity Films in association with Sky Studios produces the project.
Along with Hauer-King as Sokolov, Próchniak as Furman, and Lynskey as Morris, Nay will portray Stefan Baretzki. Regarding casting, Hauer-King who is set to feature in Disney’s upcoming live-action version of The Little Mermaid said, “It is a huge privilege to be telling Lale’s incredible story — one that he was so courageous to share. I have the utmost respect and admiration for his ability to find humanity and kindness in the most inhumane of places. These scripts heartbreakingly and vividly depict this appalling time in our history, and I feel proud to be honoring Lale and Gita’s remarkable journey.”
Similarly, Próchniak stated, “Reimagining Gita Sokolov and her story for screen has been one of the greatest honors of my career so far, as well as a heartrending experience. I know this won’t be an easy story to tell, but I will treat their story with the utmost respect.”
As for Lynskey who will be portraying the story through the eyes of The Tattooist of Auschwitz‘s author, she said, “After the horrors experienced at Auschwitz-Birkenau, the continuation of Lale and Gita Sokolov’s story is finding their new home, and it was years later in Australia Lale felt comfortable to share his story with New Zealand author Heather Morris. As a New Zealand storyteller in my own way, it is a privilege to be a part of the furthering of Lale’s and Gita’s heart-breaking, yet heart-warming story.”
The upcoming show is executive produced by Zai Bennett, Claire Mundell, and lead writer Jacquelin Perske with Heater Morris serving as a story consultant. Stay tuned for more on the upcoming series as it continues to take shape at Peacock.
The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Series Premiere, TBA, Peacock
