It’s interesting to see how far the film and TV industry has changed in the last few years—lurching forward even further during COVID to what many would think would be the #AgeOfStreaming, only to discover the bottom line of producing expensive shows vs. subscriber profit wasn’t making the return on investment they hoped. Now, things are regressing, and all the studios are pulling back, canceling shows left, right, and center. But one project that made it under the wire—that arguably would not be greenlit today— is Baz Luhrmann’s “Faraway Downs,” a six-episode series expansion of this 2008 film, “Australia” starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.
READ MORE: ‘Faraway Downs’: Baz Luhrmann Says TV’s “Episodic Storytelling” Renaissance Helped Him Reimagine His ‘Australia’ Film
At the time, the film was seen as something of a flop, grossing only $211 million worldwide from a budget that was at least $130 million, not counting marketing. But clearly, something was nagging at Luhrmann; either audiences didn’t really appreciate it or couldn’t see the whole scope and vision of the epic movie in the still-long two hours and 45 minutes.
“I got the idea and started to relook at the footage and realized I’ve shot enough to do it as episodic storytelling through a revisiting of the piece, not necessarily as a better film than ‘Australia,’ but a different variation on the themes,” he told TheWrap earlier this year of “Faraway Downs.” “I was able to use the strengths of episodic storytelling to breathe those things out and explore them in a stronger way.”
So, as studios were clamoring for content in the COVID age, Luhrmann came up with the idea of taking “Australia” and expanding it for TV. So what that turns into is a six-chapter reimagining of “Australia” that maybe gives his romantic epic adventure a second shot.
Luhrmann says the film has a new ending, is a “richer telling” of the original, and is different in how it focuses on an Indigenous Australian child (Brandon Walters) caught up in the government’s Draconian racial policy now referred to as the Stolen Generations. As far as we know, Luhrmann shot no new footage for the series, just cobbling it all together from the leftover footage of “Australia” and putting it all back in, similar to what Zack Snyder did with “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” aka the Snydercut.
“Faraway Downs” also stars Bryan Brown, Brandon Walters, and Ben Mendelsohn.
Here’s the official synopsis:
The story centers on an English aristocrat, Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman), who travels halfway across the world to confront her wayward husband and sell an unusual asset:  a million-acre cattle ranch in the Australian Outback called ‘Faraway Downs.’ Following the death of her husband, a ruthless Australian cattle baron, King Carney (Bryan Brown), plots to take her land, and she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle drover (Hugh Jackman) to protect her ranch. The sweeping adventure romance is explored through the eyes of young Nullah (Brandon Walters), a bi-racial Indigenous Australian child caught up in the government’s draconian racial policy now referred to as the “Stolen Generations.” Together, the trio experiences four life-altering years, a love affair between Lady Ashley and the Drover, and the unavoidable impact of World War II on Northern Australia. 
“Faraway Downs” premieres on Hulu on November 26, 2023. Watch the new trailer below.