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
Swami Vivekananda’s Speech at the Opening of the World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago, September 11, 1893
Swami Vivekananda (center) and other East India Delegates to Congress of Religions at the 1893 World’s Fair. [Image from Pictorial Album and History of the World’s Fair and Midway (Harry T. Smith & Co., 1893).] Sisters and Brothers of America, It fills my heart with joy unspeakable to rise in response to the warm and cordial welcome which you have given us. I thank you in the name [...]
Sept 11, 2018: Remembering Swami Vivekananda’s Address at the 1893 World’s Fair
The state government of Bengal has declared a day of celebration for September 11, 2018, to honor the 125th anniversary of when Swami Vivekananda addressed the World’s Parliament of Religions at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Plans include seminars and symposia and a light and sound program at Swami Vivekananda's ancestral house. From September 7-9, thousands of delegates will gather for the second World Hindu Congress in [...]
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – The Columbian Fountain (p. 63)
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 63 – THE COLUMBIAN FOUNTAIN THE COLUMBIAN FOUNTAIN.—The Columbian Fountain was generally recognized as a triumph of artistic work on a splendid scale and beyond simplicity in its significance. The prominent object in the Court of Honor, directly in front of the Administration Building was a great circular basin, one hundred and fifty feet in diameter, in which Columbia [...]
A look at some “Treasures from the White City” at the Driehaus Museum
Treasures from the White City: Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 opened on Saturday, September 8, at the Richard H. Driehaus Museum in Chicago, and we were the first visitors to see the exhibit. Treasures from the White City at the Driehaus Museum in Chicago The mansion is a breathtaking example of Gilded Age Chicago, and Treasures and the other current exhibit on Gilded Age portraits complement the gorgeous [...]
Video of “The 125th Anniversary of The World’s Columbian Exposition: A Celebration” at Chicago History Museum (May 29, 2018)
A video recording “The 125th Anniversary of The World's Columbian Exposition: A Celebration” held at the Chicago History Museum on May 29, 2018, is available from CAN TV. The program featured Donald C. Meyer, Professor of Music at Lake Forest College, discussing his project to preserve sheet music associated with the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. Pianist Chris White, violinist Kate Carter, and baritone Brad Jungwirth performed pieces featured [...]
August 2018 Trivia Question
Our monthly newsletter includes a “Palmer Puzzler” exclusive to those who subscribe. (You can sign up here.) The first person to send us the correct answer wins a small prize. The August 2018 Trivia Question Who served as the “rolling chair boys,” assisting visitors around the fairgrounds? A. college students from across the country B. husbands of the women working in the Irish Village C. Civil War veterans D. [...]
Sept. 25, 2018: World’s Fair Auction #32 closes
Columbian Exposition collectors may be interested in World’s Fair Auction #32, now open for preview. Online bidding closes on September 25th, 2018, at 10:00 PM EDT. The auction catalog can be viewed at: http://www.worldsfairauction.com/cgi-bin/CATALL.CGI. Lots 14 through 57 relate to the 1893 World’s Fair, and include: a rare 14-by-11-inch poster of the Viking Ship; a milk glass tumbler depicting the Illinois State Building; a jig-saw puzzle picturing Horticultural Hall; a [...]
Sept. 1-30, 2018 World’s Fair Diorama at The Whistler (Chicago)
Natural history exhibits from the 1893 World’s Fair are on display in the front window of The Whistler, a bar in the Logan Square neighborhood of Chicago, throughout the month of September. In celebration of our 125th anniversary, the Field Museum has lent the specimens from their original 1893 World’s Fair collection for the pop-up diorama. The Field and Whistler will team up for a series of “Science of [...]
Oct. 6 & 7, 2018: Masks & Myths: Devils and Dancers from Sri Lanka (Chicago)
Mandala, a South Asian performing arts organization in Chicago, will present Masks & Myths: Devils and Dancers from Sri Lanka on Saturday, October 6 at 7 pm and again on Sunday, October 7, at 3 pm at the Reva & David Logan Center for the Arts, 915 East 60th St. in Chicago. Not since the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition have Sri Lankan dancers appeared as part of a highly visible [...]
Oct. 4, 2018: “The Vanishing City: Excavating the 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 Thursday, October 4, 2018, the Newberry will host “The Vanishing City: Excavating the World's Fair”. Rebecca Graff, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Chair of American Studies at Lake Forest College, will speak about her archeological and archival research focused on the ephemeral “White City” and [...]