Keanu Reeves has left Hulu’s upcoming The Devil in the White City series, Variety reports. A replacement has yet to be cast.
Based on Erik Larson’s 2003 book of the same name, The Devil in the White City centers on Daniel H. Burnham, the architect of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, and Dr. H. H. Holmes, America’s first modern serial killer who, in more sensationalized accounts of his life, constructed a “Murder Castle” to lure visitors into his grip during the event. Reeves was supposed to portray Burnham, while Holmes has still not been cast.
The Devil in the White City was going to be Reeves’ first major television role. The Hulu series was the last in a long line of potential adaptation for the book: Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner attempted to bring the story to the screen in a deal with Paramount that lapsed in 2004, and in 2007, Paramount reacquired the film rights and set it up with producers Michael Shamberg and Sher. Leonardo DiCaprio then acquired the rights to the story in 2010, when he was expected to star as Holmes in a film directed by Martin Scorsese.
DiCaprio and Scorsese ultimately struck a deal with Hulu to reimagine the project as a limited series in 2019, which was said at the time to be one of the most expensive acquisitions in the streamer’s history. The duo are executive producing the project alongside Rick Yorn, Lila Byock, Jennifer Davisson, Stacey Sher, Sam Shaw, and Mark Lafferty. Shaw also serves as the project’s showrunner.
Earlier this year, Reeves voiced Batman in the animated film DC League of Super-Pets. In March, he’ll return for John Wick 4, and he also plans to reprise his role as exorcist John Constantine for Constantine 2. Revisit our ranking of the actor’s 10 Most Iconic Roles.