Dark Castle Adapting ‘Burn Boston Burn’ True Crime Book

Dark Castle Entertainment has acquired rights to Burn Boston Burn: The Story of the Largest Arson Case in the History of the Country.

Penned by now-retired ATF Special Agent Wayne Miller, Dark Castle (Last Breath, Shell, Orphan: First Kill) is teaming up with Compelling Pictures (I Wanna Dance with Somebody, The Collaboration) to develop the true-crime book into a feature film and a documentary, which explores institutional corruption and the early seeds of domestic terrorism.

Based on what has been called the largest arson investigation in U.S. history, Burn Boston Burn is set after a tax-cutting statute in the early 1980s results in the layoffs of hundreds of Boston police and firefighters. Nine men, including three cops and a firefighter then conspired to set 200 fires across the city, setting off a years-long manhunt by Miller.

Following a tax-cutting statute in the early 1980s that caused the layoffs of hundreds of Boston police and firefighters, a conspiracy of nine men, including three cops and a firefighter, made national news when they set over 200 fires across Boston and spurred a years-long manhunt by Miller and the ATF to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Michael McGrale (The Rip, Mission Hill, Witnessville) will write the feature adaptation, on which he serves as an executive producer. Producers include Dark Castle’s Norman Golightly and Robert Bell, and Compelling’s Denis O’Sullivan and Jeff Kalligheri. Wayne Miller and Compelling’s Steven Garcia will serve as executive producers on both the feature and doc.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Compelling, Mike McGrale and Wayne Miller on this incredible true story,” said Golightly in a statement. “Wayne’s book has all the propulsion of classic crime thrillers like The Town and Heat, while exploring a time in American history that feels more relevant now than ever.”

Noting Compelling’s “deep personal and professional ties to the singular city of Boston,” O’Sullivan said, “We could not be more excited to be a part of this wildly unpredictable, harrowing true-crime thriller both as a feature and documentary.”

He added, “It’s long been a dream to find something that could take us back to the visceral thrill of watching Ron Howard’s Backdraft for the first time, and to be able to do so alongside Wayne (who harkens back to The Untouchables‘ Eliot Ness in his drive and determination), Dark Castle, and our dear friend Mike McGrale, is beyond a gift to us and the worldwide audience.”

McGrale is represented by Heroes and Villains Entertainment, Creative Artists Agency and Goodman, Genow, Schenkman, Smelkinson & Christopher, LLP.