Hot on the heels of Hubie Halloween, Adam Sandler is changing gears again: Deadline reports that the actor is set to star in Netflix’s adaptation of Jaroslav Kalfar’s novel Spaceman of Bohemia.
So what I’m saying is, Adam Sandler is going to space to talk to a giant alien spider.
Spaceman of Bohemia was shortlisted for the 2018 Arthur C. Clarke Award, and described by The Guardian as “Solaris with laughs.” The publisher’s summary describes it as follows:
Buy the Book
Spaceman of Bohemia
Orphaned as a boy, raised in the Czech countryside by his doting grandparents, Jakub Procházka has risen from small-time scientist to become the country’s first astronaut. When a dangerous solo mission to Venus offers him both the chance at heroism he’s dreamt of, and a way to atone for his father’s sins as a Communist informer, he ventures boldly into the vast unknown. But in so doing, he leaves behind his devoted wife, Lenka, whose love, he realizes too late, he has sacrificed on the altar of his ambitions.
Alone in Deep Space, Jakub discovers a possibly imaginary giant alien spider, who becomes his unlikely companion. Over philosophical conversations about the nature of love, life and death, and the deliciousness of bacon, the pair form an intense and emotional bond. Will it be enough to see Jakub through a clash with secret Russian rivals and return him safely to Earth for a second chance with Lenka?
The giant alien spider may or may not be real, though it does, at one point, tell Jakub that it has eaten all the Nutella. As Leah Schnelbach said in her review, “The book takes the trappings of sci-fi and uses them to grapple with Europe’s past.”
Netflix’s adaptation may use a different title—Deadline refers to it as an “untitled drama”—and will be directed by Johan Renck, who won an Emmy for his work on Chernobyl. Channing Tatum is among the producers.
