In their relentless quest to unearth the next big hit, platforms and Hollywood studios regularly engage in a costly dance: spectacular auctions to acquire the adaptation rights for novels, short stories, and other manuscripts, sometimes even before their publication. While not every acquisition warrants an article, sometimes the sum spent is so spectacular that it inevitably grabs media attention.

Such is the case for the 23-page short story Understudy, written by horror and science fiction author Nicholas Binge, which Netflix purchased for the hefty sum of one million dollars – that's $43,478 per page. Quite an investment!

What is it about?

This science-fiction thriller follows an actor recruited for a very particular role in South Korea. Quickly, the situation escalates: crimes are committed and bodies begin to pile up around him. The actor then realizes that he is not there by chance, but finds himself, despite himself, at the heart of a large-scale, machiavellian conspiracy orchestrated by a mysterious entity.

Who is Nicholas Binge?

Only 36 years old, Nicholas Binge is a leading figure in new horror literature. Often described as a British Stephen King, the writer already has several novels in various stages of adaptation. For instance, studio A24 recently acquired the rights to his novel White Smoke (unpublished in France), while his work Dissolution (also unpublished in France) is currently in development at Sony Pictures.

Who will adapt Understudy?

While it's still unknown who will be tasked with stretching the short story into an entire series, we do know that production has been entrusted to directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, fresh off the great success of Project Hail Mary. Korean-American actor Steven Yeun (Minari, Mickey 17) is also on board, and will likely portray one of the key characters in this story.

The Understudy series will be available soon on Netflix.