‘Outlander’ Star Caitriona Balfe Options Rights To Adapt Sarah Crossan’s Novel ‘Here Is The Beehive’

EXCLUSIVE: Golden Globe- and BAFTA-nominated actress and producer Caitriona Balfe, together with Ocean Independent, the production arm of talent agency Emptage Hallett, have secured rights to adapt and produce Sarah Crossan’s novel Here Is the Beehive. Sources close to Balfe say schedule and timing permitting, this is intended to be a starring vehicle for Balfe as well.

Published last week in the UK by Bloomsbury Publishing, the novel is scheduled for publication in the U.S. in November by publisher Little, Brown.

“I am beyond thrilled that Sarah agreed to collaborate with me to bring her exciting and compelling novel to life for the screen,” said Balfe. “I was particularly drawn to her portrayal of a flawed, complex and wounded woman, navigating a tragic circumstance somewhat of her own creation.”

Here Is the Beehive is described as a suspenseful, immediate novel about grief, death and obsession. The narrative centers around Ana and Connor, who have been having an affair for three years. In hotel rooms and coffee shops, swiftly deleted texts and secretly captured weekends, they have built an insular world focused on one another. Peeling away the layers of two overlapping marriages, the book is a devastating excavation about risk, obsession and loss.

“I am delighted Caitriona Balfe has acquired the film rights to Here Is the Beehive,” said Crossan. “Her vision is ambitious and daring as well as sensitive to the original text. I am excited to be working with her and her team over the coming months and years.”

Balfe is best known for playing Claire in Starz’s popular drama series Outlander, which just concluded its fifth season. Based on Diana Gabaldon’s eight-book series, the series continues to be a fan favorite and has garnered numerous accolades for Balfe since the series launch in 2014. Balfe also serves as a producer on the show. On the big screen, she most recently starred as the female lead in the Oscar-nominated Ford v Ferrari.

Balfe is repped by WME, Jackoway Austen and Emptage Hallett in the UK. Crossan is represented by A.M. Heath in association with Dench Arnold.