Cooper will write and direct 'The Pale Blue Eye', which is based on a 2003 novel by Louis Bayard.
Netflix has acquired Christian Bale and Scott Cooper’s Edgar Allen Poe-inspired thriller The Pale Blue Eye in a $55m deal for worldwide rights.
The sale marks a record for a worldwide deal at the European Film Market, which is being held virtually this year.
Cooper will write and direct The Pale Blue Eye, which is based on a 2003 novel by Louis Bayard. The story is set in 1830 and finds a veteran detective (Bale) investigating a gruesome murder at West Point Academy.
As an assistant, the detective takes on a young poet with a penchant for drink, the man who will someday come to be known to the world as Edgar Allen Poe. As they work to uncover the mystery, their own friendship soon unravels as Poe delves into his partner’s own dark past.
Cross Creek is financing and producing The Pale Blue Eye, and CAA Media Finance and Endeavour Content are co-represented domestic distribution rights. MadRiver handled international sales.
Production is tentatively scheduled to begin this fall. Bale and Cooper will also both produce the film, as will John Lesher and Cross Creek’s Tyler Thompson.
