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The Los Angeles studio Gaumont USA has acquired the option to develop the book Opus by journalist Gareth Gore for the screen, securing what the company calls a project with international resonance. The agreement covers the audiovisual rights necessary to adapt Gore’s investigatory narrative, which was published in 2026 in English by Simon & Schuster and in Spanish by Crítica. Represented by the media rights team at Curtis Brown, Gore’s work began as reporting on the sudden 2017 collapse of Banco Popular — a failure that culminated in its sale to Banco Santander for a symbolic €1.
Gore’s reporting started as a routine financial assignment but deepened into an inquiry whose scope surprised him. As he followed missing documents and unexplained transactions, he traced patterns that formed the backbone of his book, titled in full Opus: The Cult of Dark Money, Human Trafficking, and Right-Wing Conspiracy Within the Catholic Church. The narrative lays out how a seemingly ordinary banking collapse intersected with wider structures of influence. The manuscript argues that powerful networks used the bank’s resources over decades, and that those operations still have consequences beyond Spain, including measurable effects in the United States. Throughout the book Gore combines on-the-ground reporting with archival research to reconstruct those connections.
How Gaumont frames the adaptation
Gaumont USA describes the project as a chance to dramatize the meeting point of religion, money and politics, presenting it as material that naturally lends itself to screen storytelling. Nicolas Atlan, president of Gaumont USA, praised Gore’s work as layered and cinematic, and emphasized the public interest in narratives that expose influence kept out of public scrutiny. Christian Gabela, Gaumont USA’s senior vice president overseeing Spain and Latin American affairs, highlighted the book’s thriller-like tempo while noting that every dramatic turn is rooted in investigative reporting. Gaumont intends to build a production that respects the reporting while crafting compelling characters and ethical tension for viewers worldwide.
Claims at the heart of the investigation
At the center of Gore’s account is the allegation that Banco Popular was repurposed over time as more than a conventional lender: an engine that, according to the book, funneled resources and expanded social and political reach for men who had sworn allegiance to Opus Dei. Gore documents how those financial flows allegedly translated into broader organizational influence, both inside Spain and internationally. The book also connects these dynamics to wider issues named in its subtitle — dark money, human trafficking, and right-wing conspiratorial networks — arguing that they operate across institutions and borders rather than being isolated incidents.
Financial mechanics and symbolic moments
The 2017 collapse and the subsequent sale of Banco Popular for €1 to Banco Santander is treated in the book as a symbolic hinge: an apparently simple transaction that masked years of complex stewardship. Gore and Gaumont both point to the significance of tracing the bank’s internal governance and decision-making to understand how financial instruments can be transformed into political and social leverage. The adaptation will explore the mechanics of influence — from boardroom decisions to offshore transfers — while unpacking the moral and legal questions that arise when private institutions are alleged to serve ideological ends.
Why this story matters beyond Spain
Although the narrative roots itself in a Spanish banking crisis, its themes are global: the consolidation of institutional power, the opacity of certain funding flows, and the cultural consequences when faith and finance intersect. Gaumont sees the material as relevant to audiences in Europe, Latin America and the United States, noting that the organization studied in Gore’s reporting has expanded its reach internationally. The company’s strategy has been to mine both internal and external intellectual property for adaptations that resonate locally and globally, with a track record of sourcing stories adaptable for markets such as Mexico, Spain and Brazil.
Creative team and next steps for production
Gareth Gore has said he is excited to translate the book’s reporting into a visual form, describing the reporting process as an entry into a surreal parallel world where familiar institutions appeared different from the inside. He praised Gaumont’s production slate and referenced the studio’s role in notable series like Narcos and Lupin as an example of the team’s capacity to handle complex, internationally minded drama. Gaumont has not yet announced a format or timeline; the optioning step secures rights and opens a development phase that could lead to a limited series or feature adaptation grounded in Gore’s investigative work.
As the project moves forward, audiences and critics alike will be watching how the adaptation balances dramatic storytelling with factual rigor. The combination of a bank’s dramatic collapse, allegations of institutional capture, and global political implications creates a narrative with both immediate news value and enduring cultural questions about accountability, influence, and the public’s right to know. With Opus now in Gaumont USA’s development pipeline, the story that began with the 2017 Banco Popular crisis and was published in 2026 may soon reach screens around the world.