Rush Hour director Brett Ratner is working with the United Nations to produce an anthology series dramatizing historic humanitarian crises from around the world. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the series is titled In Harm's Way, and will focus on true stories from UN staff.
In Harm's Way, created by writer-producer David Raymond, will be the first show of its kind to tell stories from the UN's perspective. Since 2009, the organization has worked with TV studios to help promote its efforts on shows like Ugly Betty and The Mysteries of Laura, but this show represents a bigger opportunity — one that Ratner's production company, RatPac Entertainment, leapt on. "The hope is that in 20 years' time, a 16-year-old kid studying in Texas or Kenya or Korea can go and look at any number of stories of what the U.N. is doing or has done by watching this series or the other content that will be produced alongside it," Raymond told THR.
The series is designed to educate audiences about the work the UN does
Ratner, for his part, is honored to head up the first production company to take on such a task. "We do lots of documentaries, and we want to create content that has an impact and influences people around the world," he said. "And that's just like the work they do — people really don't know the impact that these guys make around the world and the lives they save."
Raymond went on to explain what each season could approach, mentioning the UN's peacekeeping mission in East Timor in 1999. He's currently in the process of finishing the scripts for the first season, which will go into production next year. Followup seasons will consist of six to eight episodes tackling a whole new crisis. However, there's no word yet on where or when the series will air.