SERIES
“Transplant,” Canada’s most-watched drama series, will be back for a third season at CTV, produced by Sphere Media in association with CTV and Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group.
Season 3 will shoot in Montréal, with Hamza Haq returning as protagonist Dr. Bashir Hamed, a Syrian refugee who fled to Canada where he now practices medicine. The show, currently airing its second season on CTV, CTV.ca and on the CTV app, is the country’s most-watched drama series at an average of 1.1 million viewers. The show has also done well abroad, airing on NBC in the U.S. with Season 2 scheduled to premiere March 6.
“Viewers around the world have embraced ‘Transplant,’ and we look forward to bringing this exceptional cast back as we continue to tell the stories of York Memorial Hospital,” said Justin Stockman, VP of content development and programming at Bell Media. “With our partners at Sphere Media and Universal International Studios, Canadians can look forward to more of the emotional and gripping narratives they have come to love.”
“It is once again an immense privilege for us to continue the ‘Transplant’ adventure with such great partners as Bell Media and Universal International Studios,” said Jocelyn Deschênes, president and chief executive producer in international at Sphere Media. “’Transplant’ has touched the hearts of many viewers around the world and we’re confident that Season 3 will grasp their attention even more.”
STREAMING
Disney Plus has closed a deal with MetFilm Sales for the acquisition of Jerry Rothwell’s BFI and Sundance Audience Award-winning documentary “The Reason I Jump,” based on Naoki Higashida’s best-selling book. Produced by Jeremy Dear for The Ideas Room, Stevie Lee for Runaway Fridge, and Al Morrow at MetFilm Production with support from the BFI’s National Lottery funds and Vulcan Productions, the film is an immersive look at neurodiversity through the experiences of non-verbal autistic people from around the world. Disney Plus will launch the film in EMEA and Latin America on World Autism Awareness Day, April 2. “The Reason I Jump” has already premiered theatrically in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Japan and Norway, with future theatrical releases on the way in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Benelux, Australia and New Zealand.
HIRING
All3Media International has made promotions and new appointments at its Singapore office. Current sales manager Kit Yow has been promoted to VP of sales reporting to Sabrina Duguet, executive VP Asia Pacific. Alexander Euler has been promoted to commercial executive for Australia and New Zealand and will report to Julie Dowding, senior VP in those territories. New hires Amanda Pe and Ellice Low join the company as sales executive and media coordinator respectively. Both will work closely with Yow and Duguet at the organization’s Singapore offices.