Apparently playing medicine’s favorite bad boy drug addict can open the door to a gig as one of the most famous rebels in history. Deadline.com is reporting NBC is in negotiations with former “House” star Hugh Laurie to star in a new action-adventure series, “Crossbones.” The project comes from “Luther”creator Neil Cross and feature producers Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald. This time around, Laurie won’t have to fake the accent, as he’ll be playing the English pirate Blackbeard.
According to the site, the 10-episode Crossbones is set in 1715 on the Bahamian island of New Providence, the first functioning democracy in the Americas, where the pirate Edward Teach, aka Blackbeard (possibly Laurie), reigns over a rogue nation of thieves, outlaws and miscreant sailors. Part shantytown, part marauder”s paradise, this is a place like no other on earth – and a mounting threat to international commerce.
The project reunites Laurie with Universal TV, which produced the Fox series “House.”