A Johnny Depp Blockbuster Is Being Turned Into A TV Series
A French-language TV series remake of the Johnny Depp film Chocolat is in pre-production, although the actor is not involved.
One of Johnny Depp’s most popular romantic films is getting a TV series, but if you want to watch it, you’ll need to buy a copy of Rosetta Stone and learn French. According to a report by Deadline, Miramax TV and Mediawan (a French media conglomerate) are producing a French-language TV series based on Chocolat, the 2000 film which starred Depp and Juliette Binoche and centered around a widow who opens a chocolate shop in a small French village and has a romance with a gypsy.
Fans of the Edward Scissorhands star, however, will be disappointed to hear that neither Johnny Depp nor any of the film’s cast will be part of the series. The Chocolat series will be set in modern-day France (the film was set in the 1950s) and will feature a new cast. Atlantique Productions (a Mediawan company) and Miramax are producing the series.
In addition to Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche, Chocolat also starred Dame Judi Dench, Alfred Molina, Carrie-Anne Moss, Peter Stormare, and Lena Olin. The film was nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress for Binoche, and Best Supporting Actress for Dench. The film was produced by Harvey Weinstein (among others) as the head of Miramax, but after accusations of sexual assault were raised, he left the company, which was later sold to a third party.
Both the film and the upcoming series are based on the Joanne Harris novel Chocolat, which is actually a series of books, and explored not just the nature of love, but a repressive social structure that existed at the time. In the film, Binoche’s Vianne Rocher is looked down upon as a single mother, and she stirs controversy when she decides to sell her chocolates in the middle of the Lent season, as well as on Sunday, tempting the village residents and angering the oppressive mayor (Molina). Johnny Depp’s gypsy Roux, who travels France’s rivers by boat, lands on the banks of town’s river and inspires Vianne to be herself.
A new cast for the TV series has not been announced, but has big shoes to fill. When Johnny Depp made Chocolat in 2000, he was in the midst of a run of huge hits. In the years prior, he had released Donnie Brasco with Al Pacino, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Astronaut’s Wife, and Sleepy Hollow. He would go on to join Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean franchise in 2003, making him one of the biggest stars in Hollywood.
Marc Helwig, Miramax’s Global Head of Television. announced that the series will be available to “TV screens around the world,” but Miramax had not announced if the series will be available in the American market. Bill Block and Pierre-Antoine Capton will serve as executive producers on the Chocolat series. A start of production has not been announced.
If you haven’t yet seen the film, Johnny Depp’s Chocolat is now available to stream on Paramount+ streaming service. The film is rated PG-13 for adult themes, violence, and brief language.
