‘Muscle Shoals’ TV Series: Johnny Depp & Richard Branson Teaming On Adaptation

Johnny Depp’s Infinitum Nihil, Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Produced, and City Entertainment’s Joshua Maurer and Alixandre Witlin have partnered to produce a series based on the award winning feature documentary Muscle Shoals.

Greg Camalier, who directed and produced the documentary, will also produce the television adaption. Virgin Produced Executive Vice President of Production Rene Rigal brought the project into the company and will be overseeing with Infinitum Nihil’s Bobby DeLeon.

The documentary detailed Rick Hall’s founding of Fame Studios, in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, that became legendary for its electrifying musical chemistry, luring some of the biggest figures in 20th century pop music, including Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, the Staples Singers, the Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Simon and Garfunkel, and produced such classic songs as “Mustang Sally,” “I’ll Take You There”, “Brown Sugar”, “When a Man Loves a Woman,” and “Wild Horses,” uniting black and white musicians in the deep South during an incendiary period of racial hostility. The docu premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, and Magnolia Pictures released in 2013.

The series will explore the tumultuous era through the stories of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, exploring the stories that birthed the iconic sound.

“Greg’s film unearthed the poetic mysticism and inspired us to produce a series that utilizes music and narrative in a unique and ground-breaking way,” Virgin Produced CEO Jason Felts said in today’s announcement. “This provocative story about the rich region and pioneering artists that birthed the iconic ‘Muscle Shoals Sound’ fits in with Virgin’s music roots and provides an ideal opportunity to partner with Depp, Infinitum and City Entertainment.”

Meanwhile, Muscle Shoals is perfectly suited for Infinitum, combining as it does Depp’s love of music and its history, added Nihil President Christi Dembrowski.