Flying Scoop Television, an award-winning production company known for human-driven storytelling, has optioned the film rights to Evil on the Roof of the World: A Cycling Trip That Ended in Terror, by William Elliott Hazelgrove. The book, published by Bloomsbury on November 13, 2025, recounts the tragic true story of Lauren Geoghegan and Jay Austin, two young Americans who left their careers in Washington, D.C., to cycle around the world and were murdered by ISIS terrorists in Tajikistan's Pamir Mountains in July 2018.
Hazelgrove's narrative nonfiction draws from the couple's travel blog, social media posts, interviews, and global media coverage to explore their idealism, love, and the violence that cut their journey short. The book has been praised for its sensitive, deeply researched storytelling, drawing comparisons to Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild.
Mark Finklepearl, partner and executive producer at Flying Scoop, called the story "heartbreaking, courageous, and deeply cinematic." He added, "Evil on the Roof of the World is about more than a single act of terror. It's a meditation on youthful dreaming, unflinching hope, and what happens when that hope collides with the darkest corners of reality."
Flying Scoop has produced hundreds of hours of television for networks including National Geographic, Discovery, and Fox Nation. Their recent release, The Real Hatfields and McCoys Forever Feuding, was a streaming success. Executive producer and director Nathaniel Starck emphasized the adaptation's goal: "to show the beauty of Lauren and Jay's journey, as well as the tragedy of their loss. This is more than a true crime story."
The Pamir Mountains, often called "the Roof of the World," became the site of a brutal attack on July 29, 2018, when five ISIS terrorists killed Geoghegan, Austin, and two other cyclists. Hazelgrove's book reconstructs their final days and the global reaction to the attack, offering a profound exploration of risk, connection, and loss.
William Elliott Hazelgrove is a national bestselling author of ten novels and twelve nonfiction titles. His works have received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and Booklist, and have been selected by the History Book Club and Junior Library Guild. More information about the author can be found at www.williamhazelgrove.com.
Flying Scoop Television, which calls itself "Content Engineers," specializes in bold, story-driven content for TV, streaming platforms, and brands, often focusing on real people and the hidden edges of society. The company is based in Chicago and aims to bring the story of Geoghegan and Austin to the screen with integrity and high production values.
The optioning of Evil on the Roof of the World underscores a growing interest in true stories that blend adventure, tragedy, and social commentary. As Flying Scoop prepares to adapt the book, the project promises to honor the memory of Lauren Geoghegan and Jay Austin while exploring the broader implications of their story for a global audience.
