While shows like True Detective offer hope that original stories similar to Fargo can still survive on TV, the importance of pre-existing IP doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. Fargo proves those adaptations don’t need to be straightforward, they can pull from multiple sources at once to make something new and exciting by stitching them together. Rather than looking exclusively to their source material, showrunners should be looking to create broad collages made of interrelated titles.
I would love to see other showrunners give various filmographies the same treatment Fargo gives the Coen Brothers. A crime anthology based on Quentin Tarantino’s films or a sci-fi series pulling together Christopher Nolan’s oeuvre could make for great TV under the right showrunners. A similar approach combining the best of a genre or era could also work, such as a modern version of The Big Sleep that borrows elements from Sunset Blvd and Rear Window would be more compelling than a direct modern adaptation.
