Baz Luhrmann & Stephen Adly Guirgis Teaming Up to Create Musical Hip-Hop TV Series

What do you get when you mix Moulin Rouge with a dash of The Motherf**ker With the Hat? We have absolutely no f**king idea, but it’s coming to a TV screen near you! Director/writer Baz Luhrmann is teaming up with playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis to create a new TV show that Vulture.com calls an “epic, music-filled period drama” about the birth of hip-hop. No casting or filming dates have been announced, although the show has reportedly been pitched to Netflix, Amazon and FX.

The new series begins in 1977, before the birth of hip-hop—although it is not a musical, per say (characters won’t spontaneously start singing), it will reportedly be filled with Luhrmann-style production numbers. The untitled series tells the story of two best friends—a writer and a performer—living in New York City. Guirgis will pen the pilot.

Luhrmann directed the 2002 production of La Boheme on Broadway. His film directing credits include The Great Gatsby, Australia, Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge and Strictly Ballroom, the stage adapation of which will premiere in Australia in Spring 2014. The new hip-hop project will be his first television show.

In addition to The Motherf**ker With the Hat, which initially opened on Broadway in April 2011, Guirgis’ plays include Our Lady of 121st Street, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot and Jesus Hopped the A Train. His TV writing credits include NYPD Blue, Big Apple and The Sopranos.