TV and film adaptations

Despite his (deserved) scepticism, several of Pratchett's books have been adapted as television series or specials, and movies are being planned.

"The difference between me and Neil in our attitude to movie projects is that he doesn't believe they're going to happen until he's sitting in his seat eating popcorn, and I don't believe they're going to happen."

—Terry Pratchett, alt.fan.pratchett

Aired

• Truckers, 1992, an animated series by Cosgrove Hall.
• Johnny and the Dead, a TV serial by ITV, 1995.
• Soul Music, 1997, an animated series by Cosgrove Hall.
• Wyrd Sisters, 1997, an animated series by Cosgrove Hall.
• Johnny and the Bomb, 2006, a three-part TV series on the BBC.
• Hogfather, aired by Sky One, Christmas 2006 as TV film.
• The Colour of Magic, aired by Sky One, Easter 2008 as TV film.
• Going Postal, aired by Sky One, Easter 2010 as TV film.

Planned and speculated

• The Wee Free Men: the BBC reports that Sam Raimi is going to direct it.
• Troll Bridge is planned by Snowgum Films and will begin in earnest very soon, following a successful Kickstarter campaign to raise money from fans.
• Unseen Academicals: airing in 2012
• Sourcery: Terry Pratchett has stated that Sourcery will be the fifth discworld novel to be adapted for Sky One, although he initially wanted to adapt Making Money. However, he thinks it may work better as a film and he can have fun with characters like *Nijel the Destroyer.
• The Watch crime series. Prime Focus Productions are going to produce a crime-a-week drama set in Ankh-Morpork. See [[1]].

Not happening, postponed to unknown date

Mort

Mort was the first book rumoured to be put on the big screen, and already subject of talk in 1992 on alt.fan.pratchett. Even then the prospects weren't too good:

"A production company was put together and there was US and Scandinavian and European involvement, and I wrote a couple of script drafts which went down well and everything was looking fine and then the US people said 'Hey, we've been doing market research in Power Cable, Nebraska, and other centres of culture, and the Death/skeleton bit doesn't work for us, it's a bit of a downer, we have a prarm with it, so lose the skeleton.' The rest of the consortium said, did you read the script? The Americans said: sure, we LOVE it, it's GREAT, it's HIGH CONCEPT. Just lose the Death angle, guys.

"Whereupon, I'm happy to say, they were told to keep on with the medication and come back in a hundred years."

—Terry Pratchett, alt.fan.pratchett

In 1998, an update was posted about Mort, the Movie:

"...is looking like it won't happen now, despite months of development work.

"Without going into lots of detail, it's hit the familiar Hollywood iceberg (the one which would've set Good Omens in Indiana without the Four Horsemen). People suddenly grow an extra head and say things like "we have to make this relevant to the American teenager". And it's at times like this I get very glad that control has not been completely relinquished, because people are going to start suggesting really dumb things. There's still some UK involvement, but I really cannot see a purely UK movie made. Mort isn't fashionable UK movie material – there's no parts in it for Hugh or Emma, it's not set it Sheffield, and no one shoves drugs up their bum..."

—Terry Pratchett, alt.fan.pratchett

Good Omens

Production on Good Omens started in 2000, but due to lack of funds the movie has been postponed to an unknown date. Although both Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman have never publicly said it isn't going to happen, chances are slim. As Neil Gaiman said:

"Personally I don't really think the Good Omens movie is dead. I think of it as lying in a glass coffin with white lilies on its chest and with mournful dwarfs all around it, all of them waiting for a prince to ride up on a big white horse, carrying with him about sixty million dollars."

Pratchett said:

"I currently regard it like all other film projects – it's not absolutely certain that it won't happen..."

The movie is no longer listed on IMDB.com.

It appears that the film could be back on as Prime Focus have confirmed that will be their first project for their new Productions section of their company.