Netflix has set a September 22nd release date for “Thai Cave Rescue,” a six-part miniseries about the dramatic events of July 2018 when 12 boys and their soccer coach were trapped in a flooded limestone cave near Chiang Rai.
Their plight led to an unprecedented international rescue effort that ended with the loss of just one life and a film and TV production.
The Netflix series is at least the fourth screen retelling of the rescue tale and will follow two other efforts released in the next week. Netflix touts the series as “the most authentic and expansive retelling yet.”
The first to hit the market, in 2019, is “The Cave,” by Thai-British director-producer Tom Waller, which mixes reconstructions with news footage. This gave a prominent position to European-based rescue diver Jim Warny playing himself. And it broke the ground by clearly depicting the controversial decision to fully calm the child during their extraction. Despite the pushback from provincial officials, who criticized the film’s portrayal of their roles, “The Cave” enjoyed a local theatrical release in Thailand from Nov. 2019.
The National Geographic documentary, “The Rescue,” directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin plays the festival circuit from September 2021 and has been available on the Disney+ streaming platform since January this year. It used thousands of hours of body-cam footage from actual divers and received a BAFTA nomination.
Veteran Hollywood director, Ron Howard used an extensive Thai cast and international stars Viggo Mortensen, Colin Farrell, Joel Edgerton and Tom Bateman, for his “13 Lives” produced by MGM Amazon. It was filmed entirely in Australia, thus avoiding being held hostage to Thai government script approval.
The film was initially expected to receive a wide theatrical release. Instead, it will now have a shorter theatrical release from Friday (July 29, 2022), in some countries, before moving to Amazon Prime Video on August 5.
On the same day (August 5, 2022), Lionsgate will give a limited theatrical and digital release to “Cave Rescue”, a re-edited version of Waller’s “The Cave”. The Blu-ray and DVD release of “Cave Rescue” will be on the market by September 13, one week before Netflix’s “Thai Cave Rescue”.
The Netflix series, while also retelling fictional real events, can show a different authenticity. It was directed by Thailand’s Nattawut ‘Baz’ Poonpiriya (“One for the Road,” “Bad Genius”) and Thai American Kevin Tancharoen (“The Brothers Sun,” “The Book of Boba Fett,” “Warrior”). And it is the only version of the film that has been allowed access to the 12 boy members of the Wild Boars football team. Filming took place in a real boy’s house with Tham Luang himself.
The Film Board of Thailand asked for the set-up of a special purpose vehicle, 13 Tham Luang Company Limited, where the exclusive rights and lifetime of the boys were controlled. This ensures that each boy will be paid THB3 million (about $86,000 at current exchange rates) with additional amounts paid to other organizations involved in the rescue. It then auditions international companies to work with.
Pure Flix Entertainment and Universal have also announced the cave project. Universal’s pitch involved working with Michael De Luca and Dana Brunetti, who claimed to have previously acquired the life rights of trainer Ekkapol ‘Eak’ Chantawong, Dr. Richard ‘Harry’ Harris, Dr. Craig Challen and twelve children. Neither of these efforts have been successful.
Company production credits on the Netflix series go to Electric Somewhere, SK Global Entertainment and Netflix. And Variety understands that the Thai government has no ownership stake in the series.
Both directors serve as executive producers along with Jon M. Chu (“Crazy Rich Asians,” “G.I. Joe: Retaliation”) and Lance Johnson (“Troop Zero,” “The Equalizer”) for their company Electric Somewhere; John Penotti (“Crazy Rich Asians”) for SK Global and John Logan Pierson (“Spenser Confidential,” “Patriots Day”) and Tim Coddington (“Mulan,” “Crazy Rich Asians,” “Marco Polo”).
Created by Michael Russell Gunn (“Millions,” “Designated Survivor”) and Dana Ledoux Miller (“Designated Survivor,” “Narcos”), Netflix’s “Thai Cave Rescue” is a fictional retelling that casts actors in the main adult roles – park rangers , local officials and rescue divers – as well as 12 real-life members of the boys’ soccer team. Nicholas Bell plays diver Vern Unsworth, Nicholas Farnell is John Volanthen, Christopher Stollery is Rick Stanton, Rodger Corser represents Harris and Damon Herriman portrays Challen.
The Thai cast is led by Papangkorn ‘Beam’ Lerkchaleampote as football coach Eak, Thaneth ‘Ek’ Warakulnukroh as Chiang Rai’s governor Narongsak Osottanakorn, and Urassaya ‘Yaya’ Sperbund and Manatsanun ‘Donut’ Phanlerdwongsakul as Kelly and Pim – real fictional representations. -world hydraulic engineer and park ranger. Supakorn ‘Tok’ Kitsuwan plays former Thai Navy diver Saman ‘Ja Sam’ Gunan, while Bloom Varin plays army doctor Colonel Bhak Loharjun.
“‘Thai Cave Rescue’ is the first opportunity for audiences around the world to see the story of Tham Luang in a new and more emotional light – focusing on the perspective of the 12 Wild Boars, Coach Eak, and heroes like Saman ‘Ja Sam’ Gunan, who lived outside the operation remains out of the public limelight,” Poonpiriya said in a prepared statement.
“I want to bring my experience of telling big superhero stories to the real world. A place where real superheroes work together for a common goal regardless of where they come from, and the only superpower is the perseverance of the human spirit and what we can do when we work together,” Tancharoen said.
“For us, ‘Thai Cave Rescue’ is ultimately a story about family and what we decide family is,” said showrunner, writer and executive producer Gunn. “From the parents and guardians of the children themselves to the thousands of local and international rescuers joining the mission, this whole world comes together as one big family. We intended for the event to cover not only the rescue operation but also what the Wild Boars went through inside the cave, and we believe our focus on achieving authenticity – from characters and language to locations and emotions – will shine through.
