A television series exploring the life and legacy of British scientist Rosalind Franklin is in development, with her great-niece Jessica Franklin writing the project.

Titled Secret of Life, the small-screen biopic will be directed by Valerie Weiss, whose credits include Outer Banks. Elizabeth Bay Productions, the company behind Terrence Malick’s A Hidden Life, is producing.

The series will examine the scientist whose research was central to understanding DNA’s double helix structure. Franklin died in 1958 at the age of 37, but her structural virology work would also facilitate the development of Covid-19 vaccines decades later.

Her place in the story of DNA has continued to receive renewed attention. In 2023, scientists concluded that Franklin was an equal participant in the discovery process alongside James Watson and Francis Crick.

A Broader Portrait of Rosalind Franklin

Secret of Life is being developed separately from a forthcoming film starring Natalie Portman as Franklin. That FilmNation movie, associated with Tom Hooper, is an adaptation of Anna Ziegler’s play Photograph 51.

Nicole Kidman previously portrayed Franklin in the stage production. Shakyra Dowling, who cast Kidman in the play, is now leading casting for the television project.

While both upcoming versions center on Franklin, the series is expected to take a wider view of her life than the film adaptation. No cast has yet been identified for the small-screen production.

For Jessica Franklin, the project carries both a personal connection and the responsibility of presenting her great-aunt’s story to a television audience.

She described bringing Franklin’s life to the screen as “the greatest challenge and the greatest honour of my life.”

Jessica Franklin also praised Weiss as “the ideal person to finally give Rosalind’s story and character the justice that history has denied her.”

Weiss said Franklin had “been my hero since I first studied biology.”

The Team Behind the Series

Weiss and Eugin Koh are named among the project’s executive producers. Elizabeth Bay Productions is run by DDA founder Dennis Davidson and Grant Hill, who is associated with Matrix.

WestEnd Films will handle sales for Secret of Life at MIPCOM Cannes. A broadcaster, streaming platform and release date have not been announced in the supplied material.

Weiss is managed by Antoni Kaczmarek at 42 and represented by Sean Freidin at CAA, as well as Victoria Cook and Lauren Bishow at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein + Selz PC.

What Happens Next?

Casting remains a key next step as Dowling begins assembling the on-screen ensemble. With WestEnd Films taking the project to MIPCOM Cannes, the series will also move into the international sales stage while its television home and production timetable remain to be established.