Netflix has today given a series order to the original limited series Painkiller executive produced by Narcos showrunner Eric Newman. The series will produce eight episodes.
New Yorker writer Patrick Radden Keefe's article "The Family That Built an Empire of Pain" and Pulitzer Prize winner Barry Meier's book Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic will serve as source material for the series. Both authors will serve as consultants.
Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood) are writing the series, with Peter Berg (Friday Night Lights) set to direct all eight episodes. They will executive produce with Newman and Alex Gibney.
"A tragedy decades in the making, the opioid crisis has become one of the most devastating public health crises of our time," said Newman, "Unlike other drug epidemics, born from underground manufacturing and covert smuggling, this epidemic began by prescription - dispensed by doctors, approved by government regulators, and promoted by a family-owned pharmaceutical giant that made billions while betraying the trust of patients and the public. I'm grateful to Micah & Noah, and Alex for bringing this story to me. Noah and Micah's narrative of how it happened, based on the spectacular reporting of Patrick Radden Keefe and Barry Meier, is heartbreaking and terrifying. I'm honored to be working with the great Alex Gibney, and I'm thrilled that Peter Berg is coming on to direct it."
"Eric Newman has masterfully chronicled the drug trade for years and now I'm excited to see him join forces with the incredible Alex Gibney, Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster to take a more expansive view of the opioid epidemic," added Cindy Holland, Vice President of Original Content, Netflix. "Combined with the directing of peter Berg, Painkiller promises to be a powerful look behind the headlines of a tragedy happening in real time."
