Phoebe Tonkin Will Exec Produce And Act In Australian Crime Series ‘The Dark Lake’

Boy Swallows Universe star Phoebe Tonkin will executive produce and act in a new Australian crime drama series titled The Dark Lake.

Based on the debut novel by Sarah Bailey, the series will be produced by London- and Sydney-based Brouhaha Entertainment, which also helmed Netflix’s Australia drama Boy Swallows Universe.

The Dark Lake follows a detective, Gemma, as she is forced to confront the secrets of her past when assigned to the murder of her high school nemesis in her small and tight-knit hometown.

Brouhaha was set up by British producer Gabrielle Tana, Australia’s Hopscotch Features founder Troy Lum and The Matrix executive producer Andrew Mason.

The Dark Lake is the first book in the Gemma Woodstock series, with Bailey currently writing the fourth instalment. It won both the 2018 Davitt Award for Best Crime Debut and the 2018 Ned Kelly award for Best First Crime. The two other books in the series are titled Into the Night, which is set in the dark alleyways of Melbourne, and Where the Dead Go, set in a small coastal hinterland community.

Brouhaha will be working closely with Bailey to bring her novel to the screen, with screenwriter Becca Johnstone also on board. Johnstone’s upcoming credits include feature films Addition and Ascent.

Tonkin is best known for her performances in The Vampire Diaries, Babylon, Safe Harbour and Boy Swallows Universe. In the recent Australian Netflix series Boy Swallows Universe, which launched in January, she plays a mother and recovering drug-addict.