ITV has ordered six-part period crime drama The Frankenstein Chronicles to be produced by Rainmark Films. Billed as a thrilling and terrifying re-imagining of the Frankenstein myth, the series will star Sean Bean as Inspector John Marlott. Blending the investigation and horror genres, it hails from Emmy-nominated director and writer Benjamin Ross (RKO 281, The Young Poisoner’s Handbook) and writer Barry Langford (Torte Bluma). It has been commissioned for air on ITV’s subscription channel ITV Encore, the first original drama for the pay outlet since it launched earlier this year. Shooting starts in Northern Ireland in January.

Set in 1827 London, the drama begins when Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel recruits Marlott after a successful operation by Thames River Police to apprehend a gang of opium smugglers. As Marlott stands on the water’s edge contemplating the arrests, he makes a shocking discovery: A corpse washed up on the shore is not what it seems at first glance. Instead, it’s a crude assembly of body parts arranged in a grotesque parody of a human form. The mutilated child-like body leaves an indelible impression on Marlott who is tasked by Peel with tracking the perpetrator of this heinous crime. As he investigates, Marlott discovers that what he’s dealing with is more horrific than he could possibly have imagined.

“Marlott’s investigation takes him into the dark corners of Regency London,” says Ross. “He discovers an underworld of prostitution, drug smuggling, bodysnatching, and murder for profit. The rational evidence points first one way, and then another as he contemplates a frightening alternate scenario.”

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The Frankenstein Chronicles will be produced by David Tanner for Rainmark Films (Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight) and Carol Moorhead (Line Of Duty). Executive Producers are Rainmark Films’ Tracey Scoffield (Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight, Dirty Pretty Things) and Frank Doelger (Game Of Thrones, Rome, John Adams). Ross will direct the series. Endemol Worldwide Distribution is handling international sales outside the UK and Ireland.

Rainmark Films has worked closely with HBO, producing Peter Morgan’s The Special Relationship among others. It also recently produced Stephen Frears’ Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight and is working on an event mini-series for the BBC written and directed by Steve McQueen.