THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY
plans for a screen adaptation
of Erik Larson’s book
Latest News
January 22, 2025: 20th Century Studios picks up The Devil in the White City as a feature film.
March 6, 2023: Hulu dropped plans to produce The Devil in the White City TV miniseries.
August 29, 2022: “According to a recent listing in Production Weekly, the series is reportedly scheduled to begin filming in March 2023 and will be filmed entirely in Chicago. Exact filming dates and locations have yet to be disclosed at this time.” [ReelChicago.com]
Development of Devil in the White City
A film adaptation of The Devil in the White City was first developed by Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner through their Cruise/Wagner company, but the option lapsed in 2004. Paramount acquired the film rights in 2007 and set it up with producers Michael Shamberg and Stacey Sher. Leonardo DiCaprio bought the film rights to The Devil in the White City in 2010 and began developing it as a feature film for Paramount studios to be directed by Martin Scorsese with DiCaprio was set to star in the leading role of the killer Holmes.
In 2019, the project changed to a big-budget miniseries for the streaming service Hulu. The series is being produced by Paramount TV Studios, ABC Signature, and Appian Way. Hulu canceled their plans in March 2023, but ABC Signature remains committed to the drama and will be shopping the show to new outlets.
Credits
Cast
Keanu Reeves as Daniel Burnham(confirmed 8/4/2022) (exited 10/7/2022)- Matt Damon?
- Robert Pattison?
Producers
- Sam Shaw (show runner)
- Leonardo DiCaprio
- Martin Scorsese
- Keanu Reeves
- Jennifer Davisson
- Rick Yorn
- Stacey Sher
- Lila Byock
Todd Field(exited 10/10/2022)- Mark Lafferty
- ? Emma Koskoff
Writers
Directors
Todd Field reportedly will direct the first two episodes. (out 10/10/2022)
More Information
Internet Movie Database (IMDB) page for the miniseries The Devil in the White City
Posts about Erik Larson’s 2003 book, The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America
Modeling an 1893 World’s Fair Building in Silver Filigree
Visitors to the 1893 World’s Fair encountered several models of notable buildings. A miniature U.S. Treasury building constructed from half-dollar Columbian souvenir coins caught the attention of those who passed through the rotunda of the Administration Building. Lever Brothers displayed an impressive model of Windsor Castle in the British section of the Manufactures and Liberal Arts Building, and the Pullman Palace Car Company’s exhibit in the Transportation Building featured [...]
200 Columbian Half Dollar Souvenir Coins
An Iowa man visited the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago and purchased quite a souvenir collection: 200 Columbian Half Dollar coins, two Isabella Quarters, and several souvenir medals. The hoard of Columbian Exposition collectibles recently hit the market, as described by Coin Week’s article “Man Attends World’s Fair 130 Years Ago and Leaves an Incredible Coin Inheritance.” The half dollars sold at the Fair for $1 each and the [...]
From FERRIS to WHEEL in a new puzzle craze
A new word-transformation game is taking puzzlers to new heights of excitement. Raddle, created by Sandy Weisz of Chicago’s puzzle design studio the Mystery League, ran a series of Chicago-themed games last week. A most memorable and mammoth attraction of the 1893 World’s Fair made it into the September 13 game, which featured a Raddle board stretching from “FERRIS” to “WHEEL.” Go for a spin here: https://raddle.quest/2025/09/13 [...]
178. Picturesque World’s Fair – The Iowa Building
THE IOWA BUILDING.—The building of the State of Iowa occupied a very attractive place in the Exposition grounds. It was situated in the extreme northeastern corner of the Fair grounds; one of its fronts overlooking Lake Michigan. It had the additional advantage that it was composed partly of the old Jackson Park Pavilion, a stone structure standing in the park before the Fair, and one of considerable architectural merit. [...]
Sep. 19, 2025-Feb. 28, 2026: “Traces” hints at the White City in Jackson Park
Buildings from the 1893 World’s Fair have been reconstructed in Jackson Park. Sort of. A view of "Traces" looking north from the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, a campus once home to the State Buildings of the 1893 World's Fair. For the past decade, the Chicago Architectural Biennial (CAB) has brought many fascinating, provocative, and engaging installations by architects, artists, and designers to sites around the [...]
“It would never do to leave it out”: How the Columbian Exposition was omitted from the U.S. Capitol’s FRIEZE OF AMERICAN HISTORY
The United States Capitol almost became the home of a painting to commemorate the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. [Image from Pennsylvania Railroad to the Columbian Exposition (Pennsylvania Railroad Co., 1892).] U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C., February 24, 1890 “CHICAGO WINS,” headlines read across the country the next morning. The Midwest metropolis won the bid to host the upcoming World’s Fair on the eighth vote in the House of [...]
Chicago buzzes in for “Inside Jeopardy Live on Tour”
“Inside Jeopardy Live on Tour” brought Ken Jennings and friends to the Windy City on Friday, September 12. Jeopardy! fans gathered in the historic Chicago Theater for a live taping of the “Inside Jeopardy!” podcast, hosted by Michael Davies and Sarah Foss. Special guest appearances by champion Juveria Zaheer and Celebrity Jeopardy! champion W. Kamau Bell rounded out the first half of the night. Then Ken Jennings took the stage [...]
“Hopeless helplessness” at the 1893 World’s Fair
The editor of the Chicago Record offered this advice for seeing the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, enormous as it was. Seeing the Fair Nine out of ten people who find themselves for the first time within the World’s Fair gates are aware of a sensation of hopeless helplessness before the baffling array of buildings and perspectives. The doors of half a hundred interesting-looking palaces stand temptingly open, and the [...]
Eugene Field on the Apostle of Toadyism, Ward McAllister
The June 1, 1893, edition of the Boston Globe announced that “Ward McAllister arrived in Chicago yesterday.” The Brooklyn Citizen made the same claim, with some addional spice: “Ward McAllister arrived in Chicago and went at once to the Hotel Metropole. A rumor went around the hotel that Hobart Chatfield Chatfield-Taylor, who, as Spanish Consul, expects to become acquainted with the infanta, had become alarmed at the possibilities of [...]
Sep. 10, 2025: “When Bathurst Shone on the World Stage” (Bathurst, Australia)
The Bathurst Library will host a talk on Australian participation in the 1893 World’s Fair on Wednesday, September 10, 2025. Local artist and freelance archivist Kim Bagot-Hiller will discuss “When Bathurst Shone on the World Stage” from 2:30-3:30 PM. The Colony of New South Wales sent people and exhibits on a long journey over the water to share what the Colony had to offer, including displays from Bathurst. The [...]