Benedict Cumberbatch To Star In Patrick ‘Melrose’ Limited Series For Showtime

Benedict Cumberbatch is heading to Showtime.

The actor will star in “Melrose,” a five-part
limited series, which will also see him serve as executive producer, the
network announced on Tuesday.

“Melrose” is based on the Patrick Melrose novels
from Edward St. Aubyn.

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Benedict will play Patrick Melrose in the piece, “an aristocratic and outrageously funny  playboy who
struggles to overcome the damage inflicted by a horribly abusive father and the
mother who tacitly condoned the behavior,” Showtime said in a release.

David Nicholls (“Far From the Madding
Crowd”) will pen the series.

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“We
are delighted to be part of this incredible series,” Benedict and Adam
Ackland, both of production company Sunny March, said in a joint statement. “We have been huge fans
of these books for many years and David Nicholls adaptations are
extraordinary.”

 The
project begins filming in August in New York, London and the South of France,
Showtime announced

— Jolie Lash