Nicole Kidman and Idris Elba soon will be helping people to sleep. HBO announced they will be adapting the popular meditation app Calm for television in a series of bedtime stories.
A World of Calm will be based on the app’s Sleep Stories strand, which offers “soothing tales that mix music, sound fx and incredible voice talent to help you drift into dreamland”, and be screened over 10-episode.
The stress-free series will display a handful of Hollywood stars. Mahershala Ali, Keanu Reeves and Lucy Liu among the famous names already signed up to offer their voices to the project.
“With the considerable amount of stress and chaos we are all experiencing at this particularly challenging time, we could all use a bit of guided relaxation, and A World of Calm is here to help,” said HBO’s Jennifer O’Connell, adding that the show would combine “soothing imagery and tranquil narration”.
Founded in 2012 by the current chief executive, Michael Acton Smith, and Alex Tew, Calm currently claims to have 2 million paying subscribers, and was valued at $1bn in 2019. Celebrities have long been a part of the app’s offering, with names as diverse as Stephen Fry, LeBron James, Joanna Lumley, Harry Styles and Matthew McConaughey narrating its content.
“We are thrilled to work with such amazing partners as HBO Max and Calm for this new cutting edge endeavour,” said Nutopia CEO and founder Jane Root, who co-producing. “Although this collaboration has been in the works for many months, this series has been entirely created during the quarantine.”
A World of Calm will air on HBO’s new streaming service, HBO Max. There isn’t a release date yet.
