Steve Zaillian to write and direct, Hot Priest from ‘Fleabag’ to star

Showtime has ordered season one of drama Ripley, based on the Patricia Highsmith series of Tom Ripley novels. Andrew Scott, who played the Hot Priest in season two of Fleabag, will play Tom Ripley. Steven Zaillian will write and direct the entire first season, which will have eight episodes.

Tom Ripley, a grifter scraping by in early 1960s New York, is hired by a wealthy man to travel to Italy to try to convince his vagabond son to return home. Ripley’s acceptance of the job is the first step into a complex life of deceit, fraud and murder.

“We are so thrilled to have the supremely talented filmmaker, Steve Zaillian, adapt the singular saga of Tom Ripley from Patricia Highsmith’s novels as an ongoing series for Showtime,” said Gary Levine, president of entertainment, Showtime Networks Inc. “With Andrew Scott, whose charisma knows no bounds, inhabiting the iconic lead role, we feel confident that this will be a special one.”

Scott also played Moriarty in BBC’s Sherlock. His other film and TV credits include His Dark Materials, Black Mirror, Spectre and King Lear.

Zaillian’s film projects include Schindler’s List and Moneyball.

Ripley is co-produced by Showtime and Endemol Shine North America in association with Entertainment 360 and Filmrights. Executive producers are Steven Zaillian, Garrett Basch, Guymon Casady, Ben Forkner, Sharon Levy and Philipp Keel of Diogenes. Scott is a producer.