Matt Reeves Directing Apple TV Series Based on ‘Bonfire of the Vanities’

(Left) ‘The Batman’ director Matt Reeves at CinemaCon 2022. Photos: Eric Chardonneau. (Right) Melanie Griffith and Tom Hanks in ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.

Preview:

David E. Kelley is adapting ‘Bonfire of the Vanities’ into a series.
Matt Reeves will direct and executive produce.
Apple TV is backing the series.

Tom Wolfe’s trenchant New York society satire ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’ has a somewhat checkered history on the screen –– despite Brian De Palma directing and a cast that included Tom Hanks, Melanie Griffith and Bruce Willis in the cast, the 1990 movie adaptation was a notorious flop.

But that isn’t stopping ‘Presumed Innocent’ showrunner David E. Kelley and ‘The Batman’ director Matt Reeves, who are teaming up to adapt the story for Apple TV.

While we would assume Reeves would be spending all his time preparing to shoot ‘The Batman’ sequel, he seems to have the bandwidth to work on another project –– and chances are the show might not be ready to go before cameras until he’s done with the main production on the movie.

Related Article: Sebastian Stan is in Talks for a Mystery Role in ‘The Batman: Part II’

What’s the story of ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’?

(L to R) Tom Hanks and Bruce Willis in ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.

Wolfe’s 1987 novel follows a Wall Street bond trader named Sherman McCoy, the quintessential master of the universe, who lives a charmed life until he takes a wrong turn, ends up in the Bronx, and his frightened mistress takes the wheel and runs over a Black man who approached the couple. Cue chaos!

What else are David E. Kelley and Matt Reeves working on?

(L to R) Robert Pattinson and director Matt Reeves on the set in Warner Bros. Pictures’ action adventure ‘The Batman,’ a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Jonathan Olley/™ & © DC Comics. Copyright: © 2021 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Kelley is still aboard ‘Presumed Innocent’, which is going the anthology route for its second season, switching up the story and cast to include Rachel Brosnahan as the lead.

Reeves, as mentioned, is in pre-production on his ‘Batman’ follow-up, but he’s also a prolific producer, attached to various DC properties and others.