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
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – Entrance to Woman’s Building (p. 65)
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 65 – ENTRANCE TO WOMAN'S BUILDING ENTRANCE TO WOMAN'S BUILDING.—The view given in the accompanying illustration is of the east portal to the transept of the Woman's Building, and it may be said of it, as might be said of other portion of the edifice, that it appeared best upon a close inspection. The building, accidentally, no doubt, but [...]
Why Couldn’t New York Build the White City for Real?
“History is happening in Manhattan and we just happen to be In the greatest city in the world!” --"The Schuyler Sisters” from Hamilton The White City of the World’s Columbian Exposition was the undeniable center of the world for six months in 1893, but it was also a theatrical illusion -- a Dream City. Behind the scenes, a famous rivalry played out between the real cities of Chicago and [...]
History and Change in Jackson Park
The 2018-2019 class of Obama Foundation Scholars recently convened in Chicago. On one beautiful summer day, the scholars -- coming from places as far flung as Cameroon, India and Vietnam -- were provided with a history tour of Chicago’s South Side that included a visit to the former fairgrounds of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Jackson Park. The Obama Presidential Center hopes to move into the western side [...]
Inside the Administration Building Dome: “The Glorification of the Arts and Sciences” by William Dodge (Part II)
[Part I of this article describes Dodge’s commission to paint a mural for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and his work to create The Glorification of the Arts and Sciences.] PART II: THE PROCESSION BEFORE THE THRONE OF APOLLO “… illuminated by the opal-like circle of light at the summit, Dodge’s great picture crowns the whole, with its circling procession of arts and sciences, gods and muses, nymphs and graces, [...]
Remembering Robert Swain Peabody, architect of Machinery Hall
Robert Swain Peabody (February 22, 1845-September 23, 1917) died on this day at his summer home in Marblehead, Massachusetts. Cofounder of the renowned Boston architectural firm of Peabody & Stearns, he was one of the select east-coast architects invited by Daniel Burnham to contribute to the design of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Despite his pessimistic statement in 1891 about the prospect of constructing the World’s Fair on [...]
“From the Midway” a new 1893 World’s Fair podcast from the Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune recently launched a new podcast series called “From the Midway” that explores the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition on its 125th anniversary year. Host Colleen Connolly, digital news editor at the Trib, promises to offer listeners stories about “the legacy left behind by the fair, including the remnants that can still be viewed today, the cultural legacy of the fair, the evolution of the Ferris wheel and [...]
Oct. 5, 2018: “Art and Design Chicago” episode “If You Build It….” on WTTW (Chicago)
Public Television station WTTW-11 in Chicago will be broadcasting a new four-part documentary series called Art and Design Chicago beginning on October 5 with an episode about the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. “If You Build It....”, hosted by Museum of Contemporary Art curator Naomi Beck, will explore the 1893 World’s Fair and sculptor Lorado Taft through stories told by artist Dessa Kirk and Mark Pohlad, Associate Professor of History [...]
Oct. 20, 2018: “The Visual Culture the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893” seminar series at the Newberry Library (Chicago)
The Newberry Library’s Pictures from an Exposition: Visualizing the 1893 World's Fair includes a series of rich programs about the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. The Newberry’s adult education History and Social Science seminar series will include a seminar on “The Visual Culture the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893” led by Diane Dillon on six Saturdays from 2-4 pm beginning on October 20 and ending on December 1 (with no meeting on [...]
Oct. 17, 2018: “Music at the 1893 World’s Fair” at the Newberry Library (Chicago)
The Newberry Library’s Pictures from an Exposition: Visualizing the 1893 World's Fair includes a series of rich programs about the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. On Wednesday, October 17, 2018, the Newberry will host “Music at the 1893 World's Fair”. A musical performance with accompanying commentary will feature music drawn from the Newberry’s extensive archive of World’s Columbian Exposition material, including pieces actually heard at the Fair in 1893 along with [...]
Oct. 13, 2018: “All the World Is Here” at the Newberry Library (Chicago)
The Newberry Library’s Pictures from an Exposition: Visualizing the 1893 World's Fair includes a series of rich programs about the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. On Saturday, October 13, 2018, the Newberry will host “All the World Is Here”, a children’s program with music and stories for children, with the Lucky Trikes Storytelling Chamber Band. The event runs from 10-11:30 am in 1-Northwest at the Newberry Library, 60 West Walton Street, [...]