Netflix Prepping Eli Roth-Directed Horror Series

Netflix is going gory.

In the streaming service's continued and aggressive foray into the original content business, it is nearing a deal for Eli Roth to direct and executive produce hour-long horror series Hemlock Grove. The project, which will be granted a 13 episode order, is based on Brian McGreevy’s upcoming gothic horror novel by the same name.

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The project, which hails from the newly launched Gaumont International Television, centers on the body of a young girl who is found mangled and murdered in the woods of Hemlock Grove, Penn. McGreevy is on board to co-write and executive produce the script with his writing partner Lee Shipman. Mad Hatter’s Michael Connolly will serve as a co-executive producer on the series, with Strike Entertainment's Eric Newman attached as an EP. 

The news follows Netflix's other original projects, David Fincher's House of Cards, Jenji Kohan's Orange is the New Black and the resurrection of Fox's cult comedy Arrested Development, as well as its continued efforts to lock up deals with content providers such as the CW and AMC. "There are no signs of us reeling in spending," Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos recently told The Hollywood Reporter.

More recently, Netflix has been at the center of still more news. This time, rumblings about a potential sale. The company's shares briefly jumped more 7 percent in afternoon trading Monday as reports surfaced that Verizon is interested in acquiring the company.

Roth, whose credits include Discovery's docuseries Curiosity, The Last Exorcism, Grindhouse and Hostel, is repped by CAA.