Television

‘ELSBETH’ FLIES TO FRANCE Paramount Global Content Distribution has licensed the highly anticipated CBS Studios series “Elsbeth” to TF1 in France. Starring Emmy Award winner Carrie Preston, “Elsbeth” is based on the popular character of Elsbeth Tascioni, the astute but unconventional attorney featured in “The Good Wife” and “The Good Fight.” “The series has been

Hitman dramedy “Knok,” pandemic-thriller “LT-21,” and dystopian sendup “Rictus” will head off Have A Good One’s (HAGO) Mipcom slate, as the Paris-based TV development and sales company has boarded two additional series currently in production.    Produced by Mifa Pictures (Groupe StoryPlus) and N22 Productions for 13ème Rue France, and created by Guillaume Duhesme, Bastien

“Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent” announced the cast for its initial season at MIPCOM on Monday, confirming six full-time leads for the Canadian iteration of the longest-running scripted drama brand in TV history. The all-Canadian cast includes Aden Young (“Rectify”) as Det. Sgt. Henry Graff, Kathleen Munroe (“City on Fire”) as Det. Sgt. Frankie

Spain’s TV market saw 82 new fiction series commissions over September 2022 to August 2023, 61% of them aimed at exclusive online release, compared to 52% the year before, according to TV research firm The Wit. A few years ago, online was an afterthought. Now, to various degrees and in different ways, it is replacing

Spain’s TV fiction industry is exercising some caution after high-end Spanish-language series lifted off in 2018. “We all wanted to launch so many projects, so many new platforms arrived that there was no time for analysis,” says Bambú co-founder Ramón Campos. As streamers scale back on originals and sales cycles slow, the industry has time

Set in a pre-#metoo era, Oz girl-band drama “Paper Dolls” has been realized by an all female filmmaker team shedding light on this darker era for women in the music industry. Former MTV Australia chief Mark Fennessy executive produced the 8-part scripted drama for Paramount + through his two-year-old banner Helium. eOne is launching international

Audiovisual from Spain, an umbrella brand created to support Spanish content producers and distributors, is organizing the first Brand New Spanish Content Breakfast, an invitation-only sales event for international buyers, It’s unclear what’s being served but if it’s a typical Spanish breakfast, then expect some pinchos de tortilla, café con leche and some bollos (buns), at least.

European powerhouse Studiocanal, part of Vivendi’s Canal+ Group, has rolled out robust sales on Xavier Dolan’s Sundance-selected psychological thriller “The Night Logan Woke Up,” Spanish period drama “The Vow” and a bevy of first documentaries. The deals underscore the continuing upside for Studiocanal of illustrious cinema talent exploring premium TV direction, as well as the

Another year, another crossroads for the content business. As buyers and sellers gather in Cannes this week for Mipcom, change is in the air yet again on both sides of the Atlantic. In the U.S., the largest media conglomerates are all in rebuilding mode, even the mighty Disney. The Europe and the U.K., on the

Frank Spotnitz’s Big Light Productions, the company behind such hits as “The Man in the High Castle” and RAI’s “Leonardo,” has snagged the rights to L.M. Logan crime thriller novel “29 Seconds.”  Founded by its CEO Frank Spotnitz, who was also an executive producer and writer of the seminal sci-fi drama series “The X-Files,” Big Light

Distributor All3Media Intl. has sold “The Long Shadow,” written by “Lupin” creator George Kay, to Sundance Now, which has taken exclusive rights in the U.S. and Canada. All3Media Intl. has also secured deals for the show across Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. In Germany, MagentaTV has acquired the seven-part drama, which will launch on the

Nearly one and a half years after Season 5 of “Love Is Blind” wrapped, Netflix filmed the reunion — not live this time around. On Sunday night, married duo Lydia Velez Gonzalez and Milton Johnson sat down with the other singles from the season — Johnie Maraist, Chris Fox, Stacy Snyder, Izzy Zapata Jr., Talyor

Suzanne Somers, who parlayed TV stardom in the sitcom hits “Three’s Company” and “Step by Step” into a personal fortune as a health and fitness pitchwoman and author, died Sunday in Palm Springs, Calif. She was 76. “Suzanne Somers passed away peacefully at home in the early morning hours of October 15th. She survived an

Spanish star Miguel Bernardeau can relate to “Zorro.”  “He has to grow up really fast. He has to decide who he wants to be and he has to do it when still very young. Which also happened to me,” he tells Variety in Cannes before the market premiere of his new show.  Following the success of “Elite,”

ITVX thriller “Platform 7,” produced by Fremantle’s Dancing Ledge, has debuted first-look images ahead of MipCom. Adapted from Louise Doughty’s novel, it sees young teacher Lisa wandering around a small railway station. Lisa has a secret – she is a ghost and she died right there. But even though everyone ruled it a suicide, she

The Spanish world premiere that made the most waves at this year’s San Sebastian Festival was not a film but a series, “La Mesías,” written, directed and produced by Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo.  “A masterpiece,” proclaimed Spanish website Cineconñ; national newspaper El Mundo greeted it as the first work of maturity from hugely unconventional

Two is better than one. Amsterdam-based Skoop Media has closed a deal with Walter Presents on “Evilside” and “Sleepers” for the U.K., Ireland, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The platform will have exclusive VOD rights in these territories. “We can’t wait for our viewers to delve into these two phenomenal series,” enthused Walter Presents

Turning on real-life 1990s trans icon Cristina Ortiz, “Veneno” established Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo as leading LGBTQ directors in Spain. In “La Mesías,” they bring their hallmark visceral sense of diversity to each and every scene and episode, which lends them their large distinction. “We’re not very conscious of it, but you can see

Beta Film’s Channel4/Starz drama series “The Couple Next Door” is moving across European neighborhoods, being sold ahead of Mipcom to Movistar Plus+ in Spain and throughout the Nordics. Public broadcasters NRK for Norway, YLE for Finland, SVT for Sweden, DR for Denmark and RUV for Iceland snagged the thriller, starring Sam Heughan (“Outlander,” “Suspect”) and

Look what you made her do. Moments after Travis Kelce made a surprise appearance on Saturday’s premiere of “Saturday Night Live,” hosted by Pete Davidson, the superstar made a cameo of her own. Swift appeared on screen following a commercial break to introduce her friend, Ice Spice, for her second performance of the night. Swift

“Saturday Night Live” returned with host Pete Davidson on Saturday, and the first sketch of the night took on Taylor Swift/NFL mania, via a parody of Fox’s NFL Sunday team. As the anchors tried to outdo each other with their Swift fandom, the sketch ended with a cameo by Travis Kelce himself — the Kansas

“Saturday Night Live” opened this week’s Season 49 premiere without a skit, but instead with host Pete Davidson discussing “the horrible images and stories from Israel and Gaza.” Said Davidson: “And I know what you’re thinking, Who better to comment on it than Pete Davidson? Well, in a lot of ways, I am a good

Shirley Jo Finney, a theater director and actor known for the 1975 TV biopic “Wilma,” died on Oct. 10 following an eight-month battle with cancer. She was 74. The Fountain Theatre announced the news of Finney’s death in a statement on Friday. “It shatters my heart beyond expression to announce the passing of my artistic

Stephanie Beatriz, Keith David and Kimiko Glenn are set to star in the new adult animated series “Hazbin Hotel.” The first season will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in January 2024. Prime Video unveiled the full voice cast at New York Comic Con on Saturday, along with a teaser of an original song called “Happy

Over two years since the first season aired, Amazon Prime Video‘s “Invincible” is back for Season 2. The animated superhero series will pick up right where the last season ended, introducing new characters and stories from the comic it is based on. The first four episodes of Season 2 will debut on Prime Video on

Julia Louis-Dreyfus appears to be just as clueless about a potential “Seinfeld” reunion. During a stand-up set earlier this month, Jerry Seinfeld told a Boston audience that he “has a little secret” about the finale of the beloved sitcom. “Something is going to happen that has to do with that ending. It hasn’t happened yet,”

Fox will utilize its NFL doubleheader on Sunday, January 7, to help launch the network’s latest animated comedy, “Grimsburg.” The show, starring Jon Hamm (who also executive produces), will air immediately following the second game in all time zones. The scheduling strategy was set to be announced on Saturday at the New York Comic-Con, where

It’s the early 1950s — and society thinks women like Brie Larson’s character Elizabeth Zott belong at home and not in a science laboratory. Apple TV+’s “Lessons in Chemistry” follows Elizabeth, who dreams of being a chemist, but the world has other plans. Rather than listen to any of her ideas, the men at the

Kids spend more than 60 minutes consuming content a day on any device, and that figure is higher in the U.S., according to Ivan Colecchia, senior VP business development, at analytics firm The Insights Family. Colecchia outlined several key trends for kids entertainment for the year ahead in a presentation at MipJunior kids content and

Delivering MipJunior’s keynote on Saturday, a composed Ramsey Naito, president of Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation talked up some of the recurrent themes at this weekend’s kids content confab, not to mention the network’s strategies for its slew of successful franchises.  In her current position, the Nickelodeon veteran has overseen huge expansion. Five years ago,