Andrew Garfield Sci-Fi Film Made Into A Series For Hulu

The 2010 Andrew Garfield film Never Let Me Go is becoming a streaming series on Hulu.

By Nathan Kamal | Published

The 2010 Andrew Garfield science fiction film Never Let Me Go is being made into a streaming series on Hulu. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Never Let Me Go is being adapted from the acclaimed novel Kazuo Ishiguro exclusively for the streaming platform and will be written by Melissa Iqbal, who will also act as showrunner. In addition, filmmaker Alex Garland (who wrote the screenplay for the film version starring the Spider-Man actor) will serve as executive producer, as will director Marc Munden, Andrew Macdonald, Maria Fleischer, and Allon Reich of DNA Productions, and Kazuo Ishiguro.

As the Hulu version of Never Let Me Go will adapt the novel, it will most likely be presented as a limited series rather than a multi-season one. However, there is always the chance that Hulu will want to get the series going (as streaming services are known to abruptly decide stories need to be longer and greenlight extra episodes) and develop the story further. 

Never Let Me Go

Never Let Me Go will star Tracey Ullman, Viola Prettejohn, and Kelly Macdonald in lead roles, although it is not announced what role each will be playing. Tracey Ullman is known for her 1990s variety series The Tracey Ullman Show, which itself was famously the launchpad for Matt Groening to develop the long-running Fox animated series The Simpsons. She has also appeared in more recent projects like Netflix’s The Prom (which also starred beleaguered talk show host James Corden) and Tim Burton’s animated film Corpse Bride

Viola Prettejohn (who is the only Never Let Me Go cast member confirmed to play a role, Thora) recently appeared on HBO’s The Nevers, which Melissa Iqbal also worked on, as well as an episode of Netflix’s The Witcher starring Henry Cavill. Kelly Macdonald first came to fame in the 1990s starring alongside Ewan MacGregor in the influential film Trainspotting and also starred in the HBO crime period drama Boardwalk Empire and Black Mirror. She has also appeared in acclaimed films like No Country for Old Men and Gosford Park

The original novel Never Let Me Go is an alternate reality dystopia in which human clones are legally grown to serve as living organ banks in order to extend the lifespans of individuals, but are supposed to be raised without knowledge of their fate. The film version (directed by Mark Romanek) followed the same plot, with Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightley, and Carey Mulligan starring as three clones who are raised together at a boarding school and discover the purpose of their existence. As one might expect, it is a very dark and existential tale. 


The 2010 film version of Never Let Me Go was written by novelist-turned-screenwriter-turned-filmmaker Alex Garland, who has previously worked with Hulu for the streaming series Devs, which starred Nick Offerman. He also wrote (and reportedly co-directed, uncredited) the 2012 Karl Urban film Dredd, which flopped at the box office but has since become a cult film. Additionally, Alex Garland wrote and directed the science fiction classic Ex Machina, starring Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson.