NATPE Briefs: MGM, Televisa Link on ‘TKO,’ Oscar Jaenada Cast as Cortes

MGM Worldwide Distribution and Mexico’s Televisa have established a format license deal for MGM Television’s competition show, “TKO: Total Knockout.” As part of the deal, Televisa will produce 24 episodes of the CBS format. Companies have also agreed for Televisa to serve as MGM’s production partner in Latin America, designing and operating a production hub that will produce local versions of content for the region and the rest of the world. Landmark deal comes as Televisa seeks to revamp its production strategy and recover from losses in the face of heated up competition in Mexico and worldwide. “TKO: Total Knockout” is an obstacle course with a twist from executive producers Mark Burnett, Barry Poznick, Kevin Hart, Holly Wofford and Jane Y. Mun.

Spanish actor Oscar Jaenada, well known for vanishing into his roles, such as in “Cantinflas” (2014), will play Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes in “Hernan,” the ambitious Spanish-Mexican series from Dopamine, a Salinas Group company, and Spain’s Onza Entertainment. “To tell [Cortes’s] story through a premium series from two perspectives, from Mexico and from Spain, is a wonderful challenge,” said Gonzalo Sagardía, CEO, Onza Entertainment. “We want to break the glass ceiling in benefit of the Latin American industry, in order to prove that, with competitive budgets, we can use our talents successfully on the international stage, under new business models,” said Dopamine CEO, Fidela Navarro.