Talks are under way to create a movie based on Charles Cullen, who is suspected to be the most prolific serial killer in American history. An adaptation of Charles Graeber’s book on these atrocities, The Good Nurse, is currently being developed over at Lionsgate, and moviegoers from across the globe will be overjoyed to hear that Darren Aronofsky is currently attached to the project.
Charles Cullen’s story is one of subtle terror and menace. A registered nurse, he was arrested in 2003 and ultimately convicted of killing up to 40 patients over the course of his 16-year career in the profession. Charles Cullen insisted that he overdosed patients in order to stop them from going into either cardiac or respiratory arrest, and to end their suffering. The New Jersey-based killer is believed to have murdered around 400 other individuals during this time, as well. Charles Cullen admitted that there were hundreds of other victims during further police interviews as well as discussions with psychiatrists and journalists. However, Cullen was actually unable to remember the exact details and names of these other victims. According to the synopsis for The Good Nurse provided by IndieWire, "[Author] Charles Graeber's portrait of Cullen depicts a surprisingly intelligent and complicated young man whose promising career was overwhelmed by his compulsion to kill, and whose shy demeanor masked a twisted interior life hidden even to his family and friends."
Before we all start to salivate over the mere thought of the Requiem For A Dream, Black Swan and Noah director taking on such a dark, twisted and bleak project, we’re still not exactly sure in what fashion Darren Aronofksy will be working on the film. Krysty Wilson-Cairns, whose script for Aether has also been getting a lot of attention, has reimagined The Good Nurse for the big-screen while Darren Aronofksy’s company, Protozoa Pictures, is attached to produce.
Currently the renowned filmmaker -- who has managed to bring an MTV vibrancy, combined with thematic depth to zeitgeist tales -- hasn’t yet confirmed that he will directing The Good Nurse. Krysty Wilson-Cairns is still currently putting the finishing touches to her script, so you can imagine that Darren Aronofsky will be waiting to see the final screenplay before making his decision. As IndieWire reports, if Darren Aronofsky did want to direct The Good Nurse then there should be room in his schedule to do just that. He is currently working on Margaret Atwood’s MaddAddam with HBO, while he was also heavily linked with directing the coveted sci-fi screenplay Moonfall, too. Either way, it will be interesting to see the next step that Darren Aronofsky takes after his success with Noah. And if he did decide to proceed with The Good Nurse, he would almost certainly bring this horrid tale to life in a vivid and engrossing fashion.
