Banijay Rights has closed further sales of “Marie Antoinette,” a dazzling costume drama created and written by Deborah Davis (“The Favorite”).
“Marie Antoinette” tells the story of the avant-garde young queen, played by Emilia Schüle. An Austrian noble, Marie Antoinette was married off to Louis-Auguste, the future king of France, while she was still a girl.
Produced by Banijay Studios France, CAPA Drama and Les Gens, the series was picked up by Antenna Plus (Ant1+) in Greece, Ceska Televize in the Czech Republic, DIRECTV in Latin America and Canada’s national public broadcaster CBC/Radio-Canada for CBC Gem (English)and ICI Télé and ICI Tou.tv (French).
The richly drawn series has also been acquired by RTÉ in Ireland, Sky Italia, Radio & Television Slovakia – RTVS and Viaplay across all Nordic and Baltic countries and the Netherlands, among others.
Davis penned “Marie Antoinette” with Louise Ironside (“The Split”), Avril E. Russell (“All on a Summer’s Day”) and Chloë Moss (“Run Sister Run”). The series is directed by Pete Travis (“Bloodlands”) and Geoffrey Enthoven (“Children of Love”).
The series charts the journey of Marie Antoinette as she is sent to the French court with one goal: Deliver an heir. But nothing goes as planned. Her husband, the Dauphin of France, Louis XVI (Louis Cunningham) refuses to touch her for seven years and Marie-Antoinette’s rebellious ways wreak havoc on the royal family. She alienates the French King Louis XV’s (James Purefoy) favorite, Madame du Barry (Gaia Weiss) and implodes the court’s peculiar customs.
“Boasting tour-de-force performances, beautiful scenery and powerful writing from Deborah Davis, Marie Antoinette is an extraordinary drama that continues to appeal to broadcasters and streaming services worldwide,” said Claire Jago, EVP Sales and Acquisitions, EMEA, Banijay Rights. “We’re extremely pleased that so many new buyers have acquired this series, which gives one of the most comprehensive accounts of this unique woman to date.”
These recent deals inked by Banijay Rights follow previous sales of “Marie Antoinette” to BBC First in Australia, PBS Distribution in the US, and BBC Two and iPlayer in the UK, which reported consolidated viewing figures of 2.1 million for its premiere last month.
The show is produced by Claude Chelli and Margaux Balsan for CAPA Drama, Stéphanie Chartreux for Banijay Studios France, and Christophe Toulemonde for Les Gens. Filming took place in many prestigious historical places including the Châteaux of Versailles, Vaux-le-Vicomte, Lésigny, Champs, Voisins, and in the emblematic studios of Bry-sur-Marne.