Hulu and George Clooney are bringing Joseph Heller’s classic novel Catch-22 to television. The story of an Air Force pilot, Yossarion, who is stuck in a unique position when ordered to fly more and more missions – the idea being a pilot who’s willingly flying so many missions must be insane, but if he asks to be removed from duty, he has shown evidence of sanity, which makes him ineligible for being removed from duty.
Hulu is teaming with George Clooney, Paramount Television and Anonymous Content of the six-episode event series.
In a related deal, Hulu has acquired streaming rights to all fifteen seasons of ER.
Hulu Teams with George Clooney, Paramount Television and Anonymous Content to Produce Seminal Novel Catch-22 as Six-Part Hulu Original Series
All 15 Seasons of Emmy® Award-winning and Fan Favorite Series ER make Streaming Debut on Hulu in New Agreement with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution
PASADENA, CA (January 14, 2018) — Today, Hulu confirmed a full series order for Catch-22, a six-part limited series event from George Clooney, Paramount Television and Anonymous Content based on one of the most significant novels of the twentieth century. Clooney will portray Colonel Cathcart, and will direct the series alongside his Smokehouse Pictures partner Grant Heslov. The series will go into production in 2018.
Catch-22 will be executive produced by Clooney and Heslov on behalf of Smokehouse Pictures, along with Richard Brown and Steve Golin on behalf of Anonymous Content. Luke Davis and David Michôd are attached as co-writers and executive producers for the series.
Based on Joseph Heller’s seminal novel of the same name, Catch-22 is the story of the incomparable, artful dodger, Yossarian, a US Air Force bombardier in World War II who is furious because thousands of people he has never met are trying to kill him. But his real problem is not the enemy, but rather his own army which keeps increasing the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. Yet if Yossarian makes any attempt to avoid his military assignments, he’ll be in violation of Catch-22, a hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule which specifies that a concern for one’s own safety in the face of dangers which are real and immediate is the process of a rational mind; a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but a request to be removed from duty is evidence of sanity and therefore makes him ineligible to be relieved from duty.
Although the original novel was published over 50 years ago, Catch-22 has continued to be regarded as the origin story of the geopolitical here-and-now.
“Catch-22 is a rare story that has withstood the test of time, not only as a literary masterpiece, but as a story that still resonates in today’s political and social conversation,” said Stillerman. “These are exactly the types of stories we want to be programming at Hulu, and we couldn’t be happier to partner with George Clooney, Paramount TV and this phenomenal group of creatives to bring one of the most well-known books of all time to viewers in a way that has never been seen before.”
Catch-22 will join a growing slate of premium original programming from award-winning creators on Hulu, including the award-winning drama, The Handmaid’s Tale; the upcoming The Looming Tower, a limited series based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning expose by Lawrence Wright from Academy Award-nominated Writer Dan Futterman and Academy Award and Emmy Award winning Director Alex Gibney; and Stephen King and J.J. Abrams’ upcoming series, Castle Rock.
Emmy® Award–Winning and Fan-Favorite Series ER Makes Streaming Debut on Hulu Today in New Agreement with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution
Hulu announced a new agreement with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution that will mark the streaming debut of fan-favorite series ER. After being one of the most-watched shows in America during its run, all 15 seasons – more than 330 episodes – are available in SVOD for the first time ever exclusively on Hulu today.
Since its premiere in 1994, ER has gone on to become the most-nominated drama in Emmy® Award history. The iconic series also helped launch the careers of actors such as George Clooney, Noah Wyle and Julianna Margulies.
The medical drama combined the extraordinary talents of best-selling author/medical doctor Michael Crichton and Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television with Peabody-, Humanitas- and Emmy®-winning executive producer John Wells (The West Wing, Shameless, Animal Kingdom). It follows the inner workings of an urban teaching hospital in Chicago and the critical issues faced by the dedicated physicians and staff of its overburdened emergency room. The series was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Television in association with Warner Bros. Television. In its 15-season run, the show became the longest-running primetime medical drama in American television history, and has won a total of 23 Primetime Emmy® Awards, including Outstanding Drama Series. ER has received a total of 124 Emmy® nominations, which makes it the most-nominated drama series in history.
Upon hearing news around the series becoming available on Hulu, star George Clooney stated: “It was such an honor to be a part of this show. I was lucky to have worked with so many writers, actors and directors all at the top of their game. Most importantly I’ve made friends for a lifetime. I’m excited it will finally be streaming on Hulu.”