The Picture Of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde is getting a modern adaptation in The Grays, which is being developed by Netflix.
The show is executively produced by Greg Berlanti’s production company, as well as Rina Mimoun (the showrunner), Lee Toland Krieger (the director), Katie Rose Rogers (the writer), Sarah Schechter, and Leigh London Redman. Like the book, it will explore themes surrounding everlasting youth, this time with the beauty industry looming in the background. The show will also have the gothic novel’s Basil and Dorian characters, but this time they will be siblings ( the novel’s Dorian is the show’s Doran).
In the original 1891 story, Dorian’s artist friend Basil becomes obsessed with his beauty and paints a portrait of him. This portrait ages for Dorian while he stays looking young. Eventually, this all goes to his head and he goes down a long, dark path of hedonism.
With the change to the relationship between Basil and Dorian, it’s not yet clear whether the story will retain its inherent queerness.
To read more on the adaptation, visit Deadline and Pink News.
Find more news and stories of interest from the book world in Breaking in Books.
