AceShowbiz - "John Wick" director Chad Stahelski has acquired the rights to Jonathan Maberry's Joe Ledger book series through his 87Eleven Entertainment production company. Stahelski plans to develop the series for television.

Published by St. Martin's Griffin, a Macmillan imprint, the Joe Ledger thriller series consists of 10 novels and various offshoots. Its protagonist, Joe Ledger, is a psychologically fractured Baltimore detective who is secretly recruited by the government to lead a new task force called the Department of Military Sciences. Led by the enigmatic Mr. Church, this team faces off against technologically advanced threats to the US and the world, including zombies, vampires, aliens, and robots.

Stahelski, known for his action-packed work on "The Matrix" franchise, "The Crow" and the "John Wick" films, was drawn to the cinematic potential of the Joe Ledger series. "It's an all-time epic action series with intrigue, suspense, and such engaging characters," he said. "I'm excited to be working with Jonathan to turn it into a TV series."

Maberry, a five-time Bram Stoker Award winner and four-time Scribe Award winner, praised Stahelski's vision for the adaptation. "When we sat down for the first time to discuss Joe Ledger, it was clear that he not only read the books but deeply and empathetically understood the characters," said Maberry. "We're both lifelong martial artists as well as professional pop-culture geeks."

87Eleven Entertainment has a diverse slate of projects in development, including the John Wick 4 sequel series, Under the High Table, and an adaptation of the popular Black Samurai novels. Stahelski's involvement in the Joe Ledger series further solidifies his reputation as a master of action-packed storytelling.