HBO Plans Scripted Series About Elon Musk, SpaceX

HBO is developing a scripted series about Elon Musk and the early days of SpaceX. Variety reports:

The six-episode series “SpaceX” will be based on the book “Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future” by Ashlee Vance. It will document how Musk, in pursuit of his lifelong dream to make humankind a multi-planetary species, handpicks a team of engineers to work on a remote Pacific Island where they build, and launch, the first SpaceX rocket into orbit. It spurred a new era of privately funded space exploration, culminating in the first manned Space X launch of the Falcon 9 on May 30, 2020.

Doug Jung will serve as writer and executive producer on the series. Channing Tatum will executive produce via his production company Free Association, along with Reid Carolin and Peter Kiernan of Free Association. Vance and Len Amato will also executive produce. Michael Parets will oversee the project for Free Association.

Jung’s previous writing credits include films like “Star Trek Beyond” and “The Cloverfield Paradox, as well as shows like “Mindhunter,” “Banshee,” “Big Love,” and “Dark Blue,” the last of which he co-created.

Tatum is currently in production on his directorial debut, “Dog,” which he will star in and co-direct with Carolin. In addition to producing several of Tatum’s films, Free Association most produced on Sony’s “Fatherhood” starring Kevin Hart. They are also producing “Gorilla and the Bird” also at HBO.