‘Dark’ Creators Board Historic Horror ‘1899’ as Next Netflix Series

Jantje Friese and Baran bo Odar, the producers of breakout Netflix mystery series Dark, have boarded their next project. The German pair will develop and produce 1899, a historical horror series set on a steamship filled with European migrants traveling from London to New York at the turn of the century.

In 1899, a motley mix of European migrants have booked passage on a steamship heading west to New York, dreaming of a future in the new world. But when they discover another migrant ship adrift on the open sea, their journey takes an unexpected turn. What they find on board turns their passage to the promised land into a horrifying nightmare.

“At its heart (of this show) is the question of what unites us and what divides us. And how fear can be a trigger for the latter,” Friese and bo Odar said in a statement.

1899 will be the pair’s first new series under their multiple-year overall deal with Netflix, which will see the German producers exclusively develop and produce original series for the streaming giant. The pact was the first such Netflix deal in Europe and follows similar overall deals with the likes of Shonda Rhimes, Ryan Murphy and Jenji Kohan in the U.S..

Friese and bo Odar have been working together since 2010 and bo Odar’s directorial debut, The Silence. Their breakthrough came in 2014 with the hacker thriller Who Am I — No System is Safe, which bo Odar directed and co-wrote with Friese. Last year, bo Odar made his first English-language feature, Sleepless, starring Jamie Foxx. The pair co-created Dark, Netflix’s first German-language series. The mystery drama was a surprise international hit for the streamer. Friese and bo Odar are currently in production on the second season of Dark, which will bow on Netflix next year.