George R.R. Martin’s Werewolf Noir Novella, ‘The Skin Trade,’ Headed To Cinemax

Move over, “Game of Thrones.” Another brain child of George R.R. Martin is on its way to the small screen!

In a post shared on his personal blog this weekend, the author announced a cable network has nabbed the rights to “The Skin Trade” – something he wrote nearly three decades ago.

“I am very excited to announce the Cinemax (HBO’s sister company) has optioned the television rights to ‘The Skin Trade,’ the offbeat ‘werewolf noir’ novella I penned back in the late 80s,” he wrote. “The deal is closed, and Cinemax has ordered the pilot script.”

GRRM added that the show is not guaranteed to make air, but he’s hopeful.

“This being Hollywood, of course, you never know where things will end… but if they like the script, we’ll shoot a pilot, and if they like that, hey, who knows, maybe we’ll get a series on the air,” he wrote. “Which would be very cool.”

“Skin Trade” was originally written for horror anthology “Night Visions 5,” and centers around Will Flambeaux, a debt collector (who is also a werewolf!) who discovers a series of murders, and his friend, private investigator Randi Wade.

The author believes the adventures of the pair would make for great TV.

“I have always thought there was a TV series (or maybe a feature film) in Willie Flambeaux and Randi Wade,” he wrote. “Those of you who know the story of ‘DOORWAYS,’ my ill-fated ABC pilot from the early 90s, may even recall that it was ‘SKIN TRADE’ that I was actually trying to sell back in 1991, when I flew out to LA for a round of pitch meetings. So we’re a few decades late.”

— Erin O’Sullivan