A television adaptation of “Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland,” Patrick Radden Keefe’s 2018 book about The Troubles in Northern Ireland, has been greenlit by FX.
The nine-episode limited series adaptation of “Say Nothing,” produced by FX Productions, will be available exclusively on Hulu in the US, Star+ in Latin America, and Disney+ in all other territories, according to a report in Variety.
The logline for the new “Say Nothing” series reads: “Spanning four decades, ‘Say Nothing’ explores the tumultuous period in Northern Ireland known as The Troubles.
“The series launches with the shocking disappearance of Jean McConville, a single mother of ten who was abducted from her home in 1972 and never seen alive again.
"But McConville was only one of many others who became known collectively as The Disappeared.
“Through the eyes of various IRA members, including sisters Dolours and Marian Price—young women who transformed into magnetic symbols of radical politics, Brendan Hughes—a tight-lipped but conflicted military strategist, and Gerry Adams—a savvy political operator who would go on to negotiate peace but ultimately deny his involvement with the IRA, ‘Say Nothing’ unpacks the extremes some people will go to within a civil rights movement as they pursue their ideals, the mystery surrounding The Disappeared, the cost of silence, and the way society mends – or doesn’t – after a long and bloody conflict.”
Variety reports that Lola Petticrew will star as Dolours Price, Hazel Doupe as Marian Price, Anthony Boyle as Brendan Hughes, Josh Finan as Gerry Adams, and Maxine Peake as adult Dolorous Price.
Keefe will serve as executive producer for the new series alongside Josh Zetumer, Edward McDonnell, Monica Levinson, and Northern Ireland native Michael Lennox, who will also direct. Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson will also produce under their Color Force banner.
The television adaptation of "Say Nothing" has been in the works for a number of years - in 2019, Jacobson said she was "so excited" to adapt the book, which she described as "riveting."
Say Nothing is one of the most riveting books I’ve ever read. So excited to adapt it for @FXNetworks. @crashbpm and I are so proud to be working with @praddenkeefe. https://t.co/RnUN6yQbbn
— nina jacobson (she/her) (@ninajacobson) March 6, 2019
Simpson, meanwhile, told The Hollywood Reporter in 2019: “It’s in the sweet spot for us and FX — on some level it’s a crime thriller, an espionage thriller, but it’s also about something more deep and resonant."
Simpson further said he thought the book’s subject is “only more relevant now that the world has turned to talking about what’s happening in Ireland with Brexit, and will the Troubles start again.”
However, McConville's family was not as excited.
In a statement released via Wave Trauma Center in 2019, Jean's son Michael said: “Using what happened to our mother for entertainment is sickening.
“To make money out of her murder and the pain that has been in our lives ever since is cruel and obscene.”
He added: “I doubt they even think of us as real people.
“We’re just characters in a story to be played with and forgotten about when they move onto the next money-maker.
"They call it drama but for us it’s trauma. They will have someone pretending to be the mother we loved."
The television adaptation of "Say Nothing" reportedly began filming in England in 2023.
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