Based on the debut novel by Michael Sledge, “Cold Moon Rising” blends noir suspense with intimate character study and Southern Gothic atmosphere
Daniel Peddle
“Cold Moon Rising”
Michael Sledge
LOS ANGELES & RALEIGH, N.C., Aug. 24, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Acclaimed filmmaker and North Carolina native Daniel Peddle has been tapped to write the feature screenplay adaptation of the Southern crime thriller Cold Moon Rising, a novel by North Carolina author Michael Sledge.
As an established talent scout, Peddle is known for discovering Hollywood stars like Jennifer Lawrence and Mitchell Slaggert. As a filmmaker, his Southern Gothic features, including Moss and Sunset Edge, are known for their psychological depth, exploring themes of isolation, buried trauma, and moral ambiguity across working-class Southern communities.
Cold Moon Rising, the debut novel by Michael Sledge, begins with a violent home invasion that spirals into a web of kidnapping, deception, corruption, and murder across the contemporary American South. While remaining rooted in the novel’s core premise, escalating tension, and noir atmosphere, the screenplay adaptation will substantially expand the emotional and psychological dimensions of the story, particularly the perspective of Donna Johnson, the kidnapped woman at its center.
“Crime stories often focus on the mechanics of violence,” Peddle said. “What interested me most in Cold Moon Rising was the emotional archaeology beneath it: the invisible fractures inside a marriage, the layers of secrecy people carry, and the unexpected connections that can emerge inside extreme circumstances. At the same time, I became deeply interested in the humanity of the people committing the crime. I didn’t see them as monsters so much as people cornered by circumstance, limited choices, and desperation. I want the audience to experience the mystery alongside the detectives in real time, uncovering the truth piece by piece rather than standing outside of it.”
Developed in close collaboration with Sledge, the adaptation incorporates expanded backstory, alternative narrative pathways, and new character material developed during the screenwriting process.
“Daniel immediately understood that this story was about far more than a crime gone wrong,” said Sledge. “His adaptation brings a deeper emotional and psychological perspective to the material while preserving the tension and unpredictability that drive the novel.”
Born and raised in North Carolina, Peddle graduated with honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a double major in anthropology and radio, television, and motion pictures before attending graduate film school at New York University. Across both his documentary and narrative work, he explores hidden worlds, outsider identities, and the emotional landscapes of communities living at the margins.
Peddle first gained international recognition with his landmark documentary The Aggressives, followed nearly two decades later by Beyond The Aggressives: 25 Years Later, which received the 2024 GLAAD Award for Outstanding Documentary and was named a New York Times Critics’ Pick. His films have been distributed by Showtime, Netflix, Peacock, PBS, Tubi, Hulu, Criterion Channel, and Amazon. Peddle is currently attached to direct his original screenplay Rose Moon, a Southern Gothic psychological drama starring Oscar nominee Gabourey Sidibe, further establishing him as one of the genre’s most in-demand storytellers.
Sledge, who grew up in Virginia before settling in North Carolina, spent decades working in finance and clinical research while developing a lifelong passion for crime fiction and Southern noir storytelling. Drawing from regional history and morally complex characters, Cold Moon Rising introduced readers to detectives Jimmy Quinn and Micky Bondurant and established the foundation for an ongoing series exploring violence, loyalty, desperation, and survival in the modern South.
Sledge will make several public appearances across North Carolina this year, including the Front Paige Media Book Fair in Wilmington on September 19 and the Bookmarks Festival of Books and Authors in Winston-Salem on September 26.
Cold Moon Rising is available now in paperback, hardcover, and e-book, and is the first installment in the Quinn Series. A second novel, The Ones We Love, is currently in development.
Attachments
- Daniel Peddle
- "Cold Moon Rising"
- Michael Sledge
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