INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

‘Locke & Key’ Is Back In Development By IDW Entertainment

By Oliver VanDervoort
Published on: 15:01 PST, May 9, 2016

Locke & Key, the popular graphic novel series, is back in development as a television series. This is at least the second time Locke & Key has started the process of being adapted from books to television, as the first attempt was eventually canceled. Now, Joe Hill’s comic book is officially giving it another go, and the prospects seem to be a bit better than they were back in 2014 or 2011. IDW Entertainment, whose publishing arm is IDW Publishing and is the company that put out the Locke & Key comics, has taken over the production of the television series.

Joe Hill has been attached to write at least the pilot episode of the series, and he will also serve as the executive producer. The series is also being developed by Circle of Confusion, which has had plenty of success working on other comic book adaptations turned into television series, as it has previously worked on The Walking Dead, according to the AV Club. While those involved are not able to say if Locke & Key is definitely going to be hitting the small screen at some point, it seems as though this might be the proper time for the series to hit broadcast television or streaming services such as Amazon or Netflix.

In 2014, Locke & Key was actually going to be made into a feature film, or three, as was announced at San Diego Comic-Con. Before the plans to bring it to the silver screen were formulated, Fox gave the series its first try. That time, it went far enough that a writer was hired and casting was complete. According to Deadline, the cast was set to be Mark Pellegrino, Miranda Otto, Jesse McCartney, Sarah Bolger, Skylar Gaertner, and Nick Stahl. The adaptation was going to be written by Josh Friedman and developed by DreamWorks TV. In the end, the pilot that year never actually went to air, though it was shown off at the 2011 Comic-Con, apparently mostly to tease fans of Locke & Key.

Hill working on the adaptation might be the magic behind getting Locke & Key made this time around. When talking about the project, he said the 7 years working on the graphic novel were the happiest times of his life.

“There still isn’t a day when I don’t think about those characters and miss visiting with them. The six books of the series are very like six seasons of a cable TV series and so it feels only natural to bring that world to the little screen and to see if we can’t scare the pants off viewers everywhere.”

The story Hill wants to revisit in Locke & Key tells of Nina Locke and her three children: Tyler, Kinsey, and Bode. The family moves to Massachusetts, and the Key House after the patriarch of the family is murdered by a former student of his. Tyler, the oldest of the three children, is plagued by guilt because he feels as though it was his fault the killers went after his father in the first place. Kinsey is the middle child and a bit of a rebel as the only daughter. Bode, the youngest of the trio, is a bit of a troublemaker who first finds a key that does more than simply open the doors in the house.

The family in Locke & Key is beset by a villain from Tyler’s dad’s past and only the children have the power to win the day. The Locke & Key graphic novels were beloved because they were an interesting combination of family bonds, family history, and the supernatural. The plan for the adaptation is to produce the pilot and then find a network or a streaming service that will agree to take on Locke & Key.

[Photo via IDW Publishing]

Share this article: ‘Locke & Key’ Is Back In Development By IDW Entertainment
More from Inquisitr