The new movie is based on the true story of the 1961 battle between an Irish U.N. battalion under assault by mercenaries working for mining companies. Dornan will play the lead role, Commander Patrick Quinlan, who leads the group of soldiers under heavy siege, vastly outnumbered 20:1.
“The story of how Pat Quinlan led his troops against an overwhelming force without losing a single man is one of the great stories of the 20th century and we are proud to be working with such a talented and committed team to bring it to life,” said Netflix Chief Content officer Ted Sarandos. “This film will be an amazing addition to our global original films initiative.”
The movie is set to begin production in April, according to the report, and will show up in all of Netflix’s territories in 2016. The film may also be released in theaters, helping to bring a sea change of sorts to the movie industry. A theater release would potentially make Jadotville the second Netflix property slated to hit the big screen, following the company’s planned release of the sequel to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon in IMAX.
Netflix’s biggest adversary in the streaming game, Amazon, has big screen plans of its own, with the goal of producing around a dozen original features for theaters, which will land on Amazon Instant Video about 1-2 months after their initial run. The two companies have both committed to pushing the envelope when it comes to original content, moving beyond basic content aggregators and into the realm of movie studio/content producers.
The news about Netflix’s newly-gained property comes as Dornan’s first big feature, 50 Shades of Grey, has already brought in over $94 million dollars in its four-day premiere, marking the star as a hot new commodity.
