The series 1899, created by Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, has been canceled after its first season, marking another setback for the creators of the acclaimed series Dark. Despite achieving iconic status on Netflix, the filmmakers’ recent attempts with their new fiction have not met with the same success. The cancellation of 1899 follows the stalled adaptation of There’s Something Killing the Children, announced in February 2023, which has not progressed since then.
The Darkest Tales
However, the creators seem to have found a new direction, changing platforms and launching an ambitious project for HBO. This time, Odar and Friese are adapting Struwwelpeter, a children’s work written by Heinrich Hoffmann in 1854, known for its disturbing content. The new series will transform the ten stories from the book into a modern thriller, exploring themes such as punishment and forgiveness through the story of an investigator facing ritual murders inspired by these dark narratives.
The approach of the series promises to be dramatically different from the original material, which already addressed disturbing issues such as violence and racism, often through allegory. Each of the tales will be reinterpreted to articulate a family plot that delves into the cruelty of reality, moving away from children’s stories. For example, one of the tales narrates how a dirty and lazy boy is exiled for his lack of hygiene, while another recounts the violent consequences faced by those who mock others for their appearance.
Unlike their previous project that remained in the development phase, the new approach to Struwwelpeter is already in the production process. We are looking forward to seeing what they are capable of doing with this material.