From Laura Ziskin, producer of Spider-Man,
comes an epic and contemporary adaptation of one of the
most popular tales of all time, with a distinctive WB twist.
Captured by his billionaire uncle, Richard Clayton (Mitch
Pileggi, The X-Files), the CEO of powerful Greystoke Industries,
Tarzan is returned, against his will, to his family's home
in New York City.
Within the Clayton family, Tarzan's return has unleashed
rivalries that have festered for decades. His uncle Richard
is bitterly estranged from his younger sister Katherine
Clayton the witty, sardonic and beautiful newspaper publisher
who is Tarzan's aunt. While Richard believes that his desire
to rehabilitate Tarzan and make him a real member of society
is in Tarzan's own best interest, Katherine believes that
what Tarzan really needs is their help and support as he
finds his own way in this strange new world. Now that their
nephew has returned from the dead as Tarzan, Richard and
Katherine have squared off in a new battle. While they are
both driven by love - for Tarzan and for the family - they
also know that whoever controls Tarzan, controls Greystoke
Industries as well.
Resisting captivity, Tarzan escapes into the concrete jungle
of New York City where he encounters the strong-willed NYPD
detective Jane Porter (stage actress Sarah Wayne Callies).
Jane's perfectly ordered life is turned upside-down by her
attraction to Tarzan and his dangerous yet profoundly untainted
morality.
Romantically involved with another member of the force,
Detective Michael Foster (Johnny Messner, Tears of the Sun),
Jane is left to choose between reason and instinct, civilization
and pure humanity, her head and her heart. While the rivalry
between Tarzan and Michael quickly becomes explosive, the
sudden shift in Jane's world also affects her partner Sam
Sullivan (Miguel A. Núñez, Jr., Scooby Doo).
Though he appears brash and irreverent, Sam is a dedicated
cop, and he is stunned by Jane's reckless behavior and her
obsession with this mysterious fugitive.
Now that Tarzan is a part of her life, Jane sees everything
differently, especially her work with the police force.
Crimes of violence, greed and revenge suddenly take on a
deeper and more disturbing meaning, and she is more troubled
than ever before by what she sees. Looking at society from
Tarzan's perspective, Jane begins to wonder what it really
means to be "civilized."
Drawn together from different worlds, Tarzan and Jane share
passions that are only heightened by the gulf between them.
Tarzan's feelings for Jane now keep him in New York, but
his view of the world is unchanged. Confronted with a city
that exists in shades of gray, Tarzan still sees everything
in black and white. When he comes across an innocent person
in trouble, he reacts swiftly and sometimes brutally, guided
by the sense of justice that is the core of his being.
Driven by his devotion to Jane and his unwavering sense
of right and wrong, Tarzan makes his way through New York
City, using instinct, his unique physical abilities and
wits sharpened by years in the jungle. Tarzan is a modern
day hero - an extraordinary man living in the real and all-too-brutal
modern world.
A Warner Bros. Television production, in the tradition
of Smallville, from writer/co-executive producer Eric Kripke,
director/executive producer David Nutter (Smallville, Without
A Trace) and executive producers Laura Ziskin (Pretty Woman),
David Gerber, P.K. Simonds (Party of Five). (From TheWB.com
Press Release).
