Iconic director Ridley Scott is the most recent big movie name to turn to television, producing a Downton Abbey-inspired Civil War drama for PBS.

Ridley Scott (aged 77), best known for his incredible movies Alien and Blade Runner, is taking a break from epic cinema to executively produce a historical drama series.

Variety reports that Scott has signed with PBS to produce an untitled drama set during the Civil War era, which the network hopes will not only entertain, but also educate and inspire.

PBS president Paula A. Kerger made the announcement Monday during the Television Critics Association press tour, saying, “We’re looking to do drama that is a little different than what everyone else is doing. We feel there’s a unique role in telling a story that is based off historic fact.”

Kerger compares the new drama to British smash hit series Downton Abbey, saying, “frankly, I look at Downton Abbey in the same way — it shines a light on history.”

The series will follow two volunteering nurses working for opposite sides of the Civil War. Mary Phinney is a New England abolitionist, and Emma Green is “a young Confederate belle.”

The two characters collide at a Union Army Hospital in Virginia, and the series will explore the two families’ conflicting loyalties, as well as the role of women during the war.

ER‘s David Zabel will be writing the series, with Scott serving as executive producer alongside David W. Zucker and Lisa Q. Wolfinger.

The project has already been ordered to series, with an initial six episodes to be produced. It is expected to premiere winter 2016, as part of PBS’ Sunday night lineup.

Ridley Scott’s latest epic Exodus: Gods and Kings premiered late last year. He is expected to begin production on Blade Runner 2, although it is still uncertain whether he will serve as director of the long-awaited sequel.

Scott is no stranger to television, having previously served as executive producer on The Good Wife and Crimes of the Century.