
Here Gruley dreamcasts an adaptation of Bitterfrost:
Wouldn’t it be great if Bitterfrost were made into a movie? I’d be famous and rich and everyone would want to buy my books. Alas, I might also be dead because of how long it typically takes to get a book made into a movie.Learn more about the book and author at Bryan Gruley's website.
But, please, bring it on!
Bitterfrost tells the tale of Jimmy Baker, a former minor-league hockey player who quit the game on the spot after he almost killed an opponent during a fight. Thirteen years later, he is the Zamboni driver for an elite amateur hockey team in the little northern Michigan town of Bitterfrost—and the prime suspect in a brutal double murder.
I don’t imagine actors as my fictional characters when I’m writing. But when someone asks who I might have play so-and-so, ideas jump to mind. I actually think Bitterfrost would work as well if not better as an episodic television series along the lines of The Night Of, Fargo, Slow Horses, or Mare of Easttown. I love those shows, which have influenced my writing, particularly my efforts to make every written scene as cinematic as possible. So, for Bitterfrost …
The actors:
Timothy Olyphant as Jimmy Baker. My wife, Pam, and I both fell in love with Olyphant’s portrayal of Raylan Givens in the TV series Justified. He can play tough and he can play vulnerable, exactly what’s needed for Jimmy’s flawed but likeable character. (Pam wondered if maybe Olyphant is “too pretty” to play Jimmy Baker; I told her viewers like pretty.)
Aimee Ffion-Edwards as Jimmy’s defense attorney, Devyn Payne. I’ve admired Ffion-Edwards’s work as Shirley Dander in Slow Horses. But mainly, I think she looks as I imagine Devyn to look. Her character also is tough with an acerbic sense of humor, like Devyn as well.
Jeff Daniels as Garth Klimmek, the detective who investigates Jimmy’s case. I’ve always liked watching Daniels, especially in Purple Rose of Cairo, The Newsroom, and A Man in Full. He, too, looks like what I imagine Klimmek to look like, and his versatility is beyond question. He’s also a Michigan native and resident, and would probably understand Klimmek, the classic Upper Midwestern guy who wants to follow the rules but may find that he cannot. Daniels also directed a Michigan-based movie, Escanaba in Da Moonlight.
Director/Showrunner:
Simone Stock, a Canadian director/screenwriter, read Bitterfrost and loved it. She has directed award- winning films and could make my novel into a fine TV series or movie. It might have to be set in Canada, but that’s going to be our 51 st state anyway, so perfect.
Noah Hawley, showrunner of the Fargo TV series, would be great. Fargo encapsulated the cold, bleak feel of the town of Bitterfrost, and I admire Hawley’s appreciation of complex characters.
Brad Ingelsby, showrunner of Mare of Easttown. I just plain loved this series for its grit and layered characters. It seems like Inglesby would appreciate the town and the inhabitants of Bitterfrost.
Where do I sign?
The Page 69 Test: Starvation Lake.
The Page 69 Test: The Hanging Tree.
The Page 69 Test: Bleak Harbor.
The Page 69 Test: Purgatory Bay.
The Page 69 Test: Bitterfrost.
Q&A with Bryan Gruley.
--Marshal Zeringue