Netflix’s ‘Lord of the Flies’ Enters 12 Emmy Categories, Positioning Young Cast for Potential Nominations (EXCLUSIVE)

“Maybe there is a beast…maybe it’s only us.”

More than 70 years after William Golding introduced that chilling idea in his 1954 novel, “Lord of the Flies” is being reimagined for television and positioning itself as a major Emmy contender this season.

Netflix and the BBC’s new limited series adaptation, written by Emmy winner Jack Thorne, is mounting a multi-category campaign that will highlight its young ensemble cast alongside its talented artisan achievements. Directed by Marc Munden in a co-production between Sony Pictures Television’s Eleven Pictures (which makes it eligible for the Primetime Emmys) and the BBC, the series follows a group of boys who become stranded on an island in the early 1950s following a plane crash. Across four episodes, the story unfolds through the perspectives of its four main characters: Piggy (David McKenna), Jack (Lox Pratt), Simon (Ike Talbut) and Ralph (Winston Sawyers).

Variety has learned exclusively that Sawyers will be submitted as the sole performer in the lead actor (limited) category, while co-stars McKenna, Pratt and Talbut will all vie for consideration in the supporting actor races.

As the charismatic leader Ralph, the role marks Sawyers’ second-ever television role, following Paramount’s “The Crow Girl” in 2025, while his three co-stars are making their acting debuts. Pratt, in particular, brings ferocity to the savage antagonist Jack, a turn that signals the arrival of a major young talent. His next acting venture will be as Draco Malfoy in the anticipated HBO Max “Harry Potter” series, slated for 2026.

With McKenna, his discovery as the talkative and tragic Piggy stands as one of the series’ most compelling standouts, speaking directly to the achievements of the casting directors: Nina Gold and Martin Ware. The pair won the Emmy just two years ago for the Netflix miniseries “Baby Reindeer.”

Gold alone has amassed 15 total Emmy nominations and claimed six wins, including for “John Adams,” “Game of Thrones,” “The Crown,” and was most recently nominated for the first-ever casting Oscar for Chloé Zhao’s Shakespearean drama “Hamnet.” Ware’s other Emmy bid was also alongside Gold for the Benedict Cumberbatch-led miniseries “Patrick Melrose.”

This marks the first TV adaptation of William Golding’s novel, which has previously been adapted for film three times: Peter Brook’s 1963 version, Lupita A. Concio’s 1975 Filipino adaptation and Harry Hook’s 1990 film. With Thorne coming off his Emmy sweep for “Adolescence,” the writing peer group may be primed for another round of his incisive examinations of human behavior. Only seven individuals have won the writing (limited) category more than once — Jane Anderson, Charlie Brooker, James Costigan, Andrew Davies, William Hanley, Abby Mann and Tracy Keenan Wynn. A victory for Thorne would place him in exceptionally rare company.

Beyond the acting and series races, “Lord of the Flies” is expected to be submitted across 12 categories total, encompassing Munden’s stunning direction, Mark Wolf’s colorful and dynamic cinematography, and more.

The executive producers for the series are Joel Wilson and Jamie Campbell for Eleven, Jack Thorne for One Shoe Films, Marc Munden, Nawfal Faizullah for the BBC, and Cailah Scobie for Stan.

“Lord of the Flies” arrives on Netflix on May 4. The full list of Emmy submissions is below.