Colin Firth is set to play Michael Peterson in an adaptation of 'The Staircase', which has been ordered to series at HBO Max.

This will mark the first TV role Colin Firth has taken in a number of years. He will next be seen on the big screen opposite Stanley Tucci in 'Supernova'.

The limited series coming to HBO Max is based on the docuseries of the same name and on various books and reports on the Peterson case.

Michael Peterson was accused of murdering his wife, Kathleen, in 2001. He claimed she fell down the stairs and died. However police suspected him of bludgeoning her to death and staging the scene to cover his tracks.

The docuseries was originally released in 2004.

Years later, Jean-Xavier de Lestrade updated it with new information. Then Netflix released it as a series comprising of 13 episodes in 2018.

The HBO Max series will have eight episodes.

Showrunners Antonio Campos and Maggie Cohn are writing and executive producing the series.

While Cohn was a producer on 'American Crime Story', Campos previously worked on such series as 'The Sinner' and 'The Punisher'.

He also directed Netflix movie 'The Devil All the Time' starring Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson.