AMC planning to bring you 'The Terror'

AMC, home of "The Walking Dead," is planning to bring a different kind of horror story to TV screens with "The Terror."

The Terror, a 2007 novel by sci-fi and horror author Dan Simmons, is a fictional account of what happened to two real-life ships, the HMS Erebus and the HMS Terror, which vanished in the Arctic in 1847 while trying to find the Northwest Passage at the top of the world.

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In Simmons' macabre, gripping tale, the ships quickly become lodged in the ice and the crews begin succumbing to madness, betrayal, starvation and disease -- all while being stalked by a monstrous, ancient creature out of Eskimo mythology known as a Tuunbaq.

According to Deadline, Scott Free TV, the television arm of Ridley Scott's production company, is behind the project, with writer David Kajganich reportedly signed up to script the pilot. Kajganich is also in the midst of adapting another epic novel, Stephen King's The Stand, for the big screen.

We love Simmons' work, which includes the masterful Hyperion quartet of novels, the brilliant horror epic Carrion Comfort and the historical mystery Drood. None of his novels have been adapted for TV or film yet, although Hyperion was being developed as a film in 2009 and Guillermo Del Toro was working on adapting Drood a couple of years ago. 

Both are large, dense projects, however, and they too may be better suited for the small screen, especially on cable. If "The Terror" is a success -- if it even makes it to AMC's schedule -- perhaps we'll see more of this terrific author's stories adapted.