Fox plots Billionaire Apocalypse series with Hugh Jackman producing
THE FOX broadcast network is developing a new TV drama about the richest man on the planet fleeing to his private island with 200 employees amid a global financial crisis.
The workers, whom the billionaire has 鈥渢reated as afterthoughts for decades,鈥 quickly realize he鈥檚 no longer rich or in charge, according to a summary of the program released on Monday.
The series, which has the working title Billionaire Apocalypse, includes actor Hugh Jackman as an executive producer, although it hasn鈥檛 been cast. So far, the Fox Corp.-owned network has committed only to a script.
In addition to Mr. Jackman, the project has an accomplished lineup of writers and producers including , the former political aide and creator of The Morning Show. Lawrence Bender, whose credits include Pulp Fiction and An Inconvenient Truth, and Kevin Brown, who produced the Starz series Flesh and Bone, are also involved.
The rich and infamous have been a source of successful shows since the dawn of TV. Before decades of inflation 鈥 and color TV sets 鈥 The Millionaire ran for six seasons on CBS. More recent examples include HBO鈥檚 Succession, about a scheming media family, and Billions, a Showtime series about a hedge fund titan. In earlier decades, Dallas focused on a wealthy oil family, while Gilligan鈥檚 Island made light of a millionaire marooned on an island with a group of castaways. 鈥 Bloomberg
