48 | MAY 9 • 2024
J
N
A
s one of the most
gripping and pow-
erful Holocaust
novels of our time, the best-
selling book The Tattooist of
Auschwitz is coming to life
as a new series streaming on
Peacock.
Released on May 2, the
six-episode limited drama
series traverses the harrowing
yet heartwarming true story
of Slovakian Jew Lale Sokolov,
who was imprisoned at
Auschwitz in 1942 and forced
to work as a tattooist tattoo-
ing numbers on prisoners.
At one of the darkest and
most terrible places on Earth,
Lale falls in love with fellow
Jewish prisoner and soon-to-
be wife Gita Furman while
tattooing her prisoner num-
ber on her arm. Their love
unfolds in a place seemingly
incapable of fostering it, but
the pair defy the odds — and
stay alive — by finding a rea-
son to live in one another.
Sixty years later, Lale,
who is played by Harvey
Keitel, meets writer Heather
Morris, who one day pens the
best-selling book. Slowly, Lale,
who is now in his 80s, faces
the trauma and memories of
his past, letting Morris into his
world one memory at a time.
As their relationship develops,
Lale learns to heal and finally
puts his ghosts to rest.
Executive producer Claire
Mundell takes us
into the making
of The Tattooist of
Auschwitz and the
process of bring-
ing Lale’s unfor-
gettable story to
the TV screen.
JN: What initially drew you
to the story of The Tattooist
of Auschwitz?
Mundell: Back in the sum-
mer of 2018, I became aware
of the book because every-
where I went, people were
reading it — on trains, buses,
even the man who came to
fix my plumbing. It quickly
became a No. 1 bestseller in
the U.K. and stayed there. As
a drama producer, I’m real-
ly drawn to stories that are
about something significant
and meaningful, and I really
believe that drama has the
power to change hearts and
minds.
I was drawn to this story
because it was about a subject
matter which is known to me,
and I thought was known to
many people, but I discov-
ered after a bit of research
some really shocking statistics
about the number of young
people who were unaware
of what the Holocaust was. I
think the idea of a love story
in a place like Auschwitz, the
most notorious concentration
and extermination camp, was
intriguing. Like, how on earth
could two people fall in love
An Intimate Look at
the New Tattooist of
Auschwitz Series
ARTS&LIFE
TV
Executive producer Claire Mundell shares how
the story was brought to life.
Claire
Mundell
ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER