Sarah Paulson (American Horror Story, Ocean’s 8) is set to star in the Netflix drama series Ratched, based on the 1975 film One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The series will act as a prequel to the novel-made film and will be based around Paulson’s character Nurse Mildred Ratched, the villain of the aforementioned film.
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest follows Randle Patrick McMurphy, played by Jack Nicholson (The Shining, As Good As It Gets), as he transfers from a prison to a mental institution, which he hopes will be a less restrictive environment. His expectations are shifted when he meets Nurse Ratched, played by Louise Fletcher (Flowers in the Attic, Exorcist II: The Heretic), who abuses her patents both physically and mentally. Ratched will tell the origin story of Nurse Ratched as she looks for work at a mental institution in Northern California in 1947.
Paulson’s most renowned roles in American Horror Story gained her specific recognition to the horror genre. Starring as a new character each season, her ability to play such versatile roles earned her a Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries in 2013 and 2015, a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series in 2013, 2015, and 2016, as well as a Satellite Award for Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series in 2015. Her first role in the series was as Billie Dean Howard, a medium who was hired to make an appearance at the Murder House, the center of the first season.
Alongside Paulson, Cynthia Nixon (Sex and the City, Baby’s Day Out), Judy Davis (My Brilliant Career), Sharon Stone (Basic Instinct, Casino), Jon Jon Briones (Blood Ransom), Finn Wittrock (My All American, The Big Short), Charlie Carver (Teen Wolf, Desperate Housewives), Alice Englert (Beautiful Creatures, Ginger & Rosa), Amanda Plummer (Pulp Fiction), and Corey Stoll (The Strain, Ant-Man) also star.
Ratched will premiere on Netflix on September 18. The official trailer can be watched below.