Netflix Giving NYT Magazine’s ‘Diagnosis’ Column The Docuseries Treatment

EXCLUSIVE: Netflix has sealed a deal for a new original documentary series inspired by the New York Times Magazine‘s long-running “Diagnosis” medical column written by Dr. Lisa Sanders. Scott Rudin Productions, U.S.-UK production company Lightbox and the New York Times are teaming to produce the eight episodes, which like Sanders’ column will follow patients with mysterious illnesses and track their journeys to find a diagnosis and, potentially, a cure.

Sanders, an associate professor at Yale’s School of Medicine, will curate each of the cases, which will be met head-on by combining global crowdsourcing, social media platforms and established medical expertise. Scott Rudin, Garrett Basch and Eli Bush of Scott Rudin Productions are producing with Lightbox’s Jonathan Chinn, Simon Chinn and P.G. Morgan and NY Times Magazine editor in chief Jake Silverstein.

Diagnosis is the working title, with a launch date still to be determined.

Lightbox is behind Kevin Macdonald’s Whitney Houston documentary Whitney as well as BBC2’s Harvey Weinstein documentary now in production.

Netflix is ramping up its content this year, with exces saying it will spend as much as $8 billion on content overall and put about 700 original TV series on the streaming service in 2018. On the docuseries front that includes a partnership announced in January with Vox Entertainment for a series that will explore a range of global topics featuring interviews with some of the most authoritative experts in their fields. A summer 2018 launch is planned.