Veena Sud (The Killing) has signed a deal to develop the new short-form thriller series The Stranger for Quibi, according to Deadline. Sud will serve as writer, creator, director, and executive producer of the series from Fox 21 Television Studios.
According to the show’s logline “an unassuming young rideshare driver is thrown into her worst nightmare when a mysterious Hollywood Hills passenger enters her car. Her terrifying, heart-stopping ride with the stranger unfolds over 12 hours as she navigates the seedy underbelly of Los Angeles in a chilling game of cat and mouse.”
The Stranger will be Sud’s first project for Quibi since last month she signed a deal to develop shows for Jeffrey Katzenberg’s and Meg Whitman’s digital service. Sud’s works include Netflix’s Seven Seconds, the feature The Lie, and she also served as a writer and producer for CBS’ Cold Case.
In the past weeks, Quibi has announced a series of dramas, unscripted projects, and comedies, including the series Biggest Little Cook-Off, the comedy The Now by Peter Farrelly; Winos, Thomas Lennon’s vineyard comedy; the Varsity Blues revival; Fight Like a Girl, a female wrestling docuseries; Darren Criss’ Royalties, a musical; the tale Crazy Talented; the drama series The Fugitive, the psychological thriller series Blood Orange; a couple of series from 30 Ninjas; the sci-fi drama series Don’t Look Deeper, and the cooking docuseries Shape of Pasta.
The upcoming streaming service Quibi, which is lead by its founder and chairman Katzenberg and Whitman, who serves as the CEO, has gained support from several Hollywood stars, including Jennifer Lopez, Steven Spielberg, Guillermo Del Toro, and Zac Efron.
“I’m going to continue to believe, and argue, and preach that Quibi is not a substitute or a competitor for television,” Katzenberg said. “Our [service] is exclusively about what you do from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on your phone. And what you’re doing today, if you’re in our core demographic of 25- to 35-year-olds, is you’re actually watching 60 to 70 min of YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. That growth is now a well established consumer habit that Quibi is sailing into.”
“I don’t think we’re going to steal minutes from anyone else,” said Whitman, according to The Hollywood Reporter. “I think we’ll add to [the content people consume] and help lift all boats.”
Quibi is set to debut in April 2020.