David S. Goyer, the prolific screenwriter behind some of the most successful comic book-based movies made in the past fifteen years (including Batman Begins, the Blade movies, and the upcoming Superman film, Man of Steel), is hoping his big-screen success finally translates to the small screen. After nurturing such short-lived television series as Flash Forward, Threshold, Blade (based on the three-film franchise he wrote, the third and final one he also directed), and FreakyLinks, Goyer is returning to the cathode realm with his latest creation, a new series entitled Da Vinci’s Demons. The show will be the first to be produced under a new multi-year agreement Starz Entertainment signed with BBC Worldwide Productions over the summer.

Da Vinci’s Demons will follow the exploits of the famed Italian inventor and artist Leonardo Da Vinci as a brash youth having zesty adventures while starting to fulfill his destiny as one of history’s greatest visionaries.

“If modern day has Tony Stark, the Renaissance had da Vinci. This is a story we believe will captivate the imaginations of audiences around the world and is the first of what we expect to be many productions with our talented partners at BBC Worldwide Productions,” Starz Media Managing Director Carmi Zlotnik said about Goyer’s new series in a statement released by Starz.

Said Goyer, “Da Vinci was the original Renaissance man – a near-mythic figure that has world-wide appeal. After working with characters like Batman and Superman, it made a strange kind of sense for me to dive into the facts and legends swirling around his origins. This will be a show about secret histories, genius, madness, and all things profane. And I’m particularly excited that I get to do it on premium cable, where the story can be as dark and challenging and irreverent as it deserves to be.”

The 8-episode series is expected to begin production early next year and will debut on Starz in 2013. BBC Worldwide will distribute the show in international markets.