“As children, we fear the dark. Anything might be out there. The unknown troubles us. There are those who say we should not inquire too closely into who else might be living in that darkness.”
31.05.2023 - 23:11 / deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: Australia’s Foxtel is the latest to take on The Swarm.
The pay-TV provider has acquired the eight-part eco-drama series from ZDF Studios, which co-distributes the show with German compatriot Beta.
The series comes from Game of Thrones producer Frank Doelger. It will launch on Foxtel, which has 4.6 million subscribers in Australia, and streaming service Binge in June. Deals for the ZDF show have already been struck in the U.S. with The CW. Further agreements are in place in the UK, Japan, Italy, France, Spain, Scandinavia, and Central Europe.
The deal with Foxtel was brokered by Yi Qiao, Director Drama at ZDF Studios, who said: “Since its world premiere at Berlinale in February, The Swarm has become one of the hottest titles in our scripted catalogue. The talent behind this production is first class delivering binge-worthy story-telling. I’m delighted that the Foxtel Group will be introducing Australian audiences to this ecological thriller that is like no other.”
Based on Frank Schätzing’s international bestseller, The Swarm tells the story of escalating disasters borne out of the world’s seas. Across the globe, lives are increasingly imperiled as scientists come together sensing that something bigger is at play: an intelligent life force, dwelling in the deep – capable of manipulating the ocean. It’s been a ratings in Germany, with an average of 10 million views per episode (including linear and catch-up) on ZDF, and is now a hot seller internationally.
Directed by Barbara Eder (Barbarians), Luke Watson (Ripper Street) and Philipp Stölzl (The Physician), it stars Alexander Karim (Dying of the Light), Cécile de France (The New Pope), Leonie Benesch (Babylon Berlin, The Crown), Barbara Sukowa (Hannah
“As children, we fear the dark. Anything might be out there. The unknown troubles us. There are those who say we should not inquire too closely into who else might be living in that darkness.”
Netflix has dropped the latest trailer for Shawn Levy’s Netflix limited series, All The Light We Cannot See, premiering Thursday, November 2.
Not so fast. HBO has responded to a report in New York Post’s Page Six, citing sources, that the music drama series would likely not return for a second season.
Editor’s note: The interviews conducted in this podcast were recorded at Deadline’s Contenders TV event, prior to the WGA strike starting on May 2.
Mike Summerbee says he may not have been alive to see his beloved Manchester City win the treble had his wife not forced him to go to the doctors and take a prostate cancer test 12 years ago.
EXCLUSIVE: Pier 21 Films, the Canadian production company behind series including Run The Burbs, which is airing on The CW in the U.S., has new bosses.
Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Amazon Studios’ head of drama series Odetta Watkins says big-budget drama “Citadel,” which has yet to crack Nielsen’s weekly streaming rankings, still “needs time to grow” with “very jaded” U.S. audiences. The exec was speaking at the Banff World Media Festival in Alberta, Canada, on Sunday, where the global-facing “Citadel” was a key topic of conversation during an international media leaders panel, moderated by The Ankler’s Elaine Low. In response to a question from Variety about “Citadel’s” sluggish domestic performance but strong showing overseas — and whether that matters to Prime Video — Watkins said: “I can tell you from a creative perspective, for me, it’s a victory, because the show was conceived to be able to speak to the world.”
NBC has announced two new cancellations, and also revealed which new show will be included in the upcoming 2023-2024 television season.
The CW is set to become the U.S. home of the the highly-anticipated biblical series, “The Chosen”.
Two from Magnolia Pictures, the story of an iconic record album design firm back and a sighting of Brian Cox usher in a specialty weekend with smoke clearing over New York City. Acrid plumes from Canadian wildfires have smothered the key arthouse market over the past few days in an unusual air quality event that had Mayor Eric Adams urging people to home.
HBO has ordered a new untitled limited series written and executive produced by “Mare of Easttown” creator Brad Ingelsby in association with wiip. The series, which stars Mark Ruffalo and is directed by Jeremiah Zagar, follows a task force of law enforcement officers and the criminals they are trying to apprehend.
Mare of Easttown creator Brad Ingelsby has landed another series order at HBO – a crime drama starring Mark Ruffalo.
EXCLUSIVE: Brian King (Somebody Somewhere) has been tapped for a key recurring role opposite Jesse L. Martin in NBC drama series The Irrational, from Arika Lisanne Mittman.
like years of headlines, revealing and expansive profiles about the ups and downs of the show’s production, and major on-set shakeups, HBO’s highly-anticipated The Idol has finally premiered. The new drama series tells a story of fame, excess, and identity with its saga about Lily-Rose Depp’s aspiring pop star and her complicated relationship with a self-help guru played by Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, who also co-created the new series. So, if you watched the show as it debuted, or plan on catching it later with your Max subscription, there’s a good chance you’re wondering where you’ve seen The Idol cast before.
Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Disney’s perennial hit “Frozen” is saying “let it go” to its spot as the second-biggest animated film in history. Over the weekend, Universal’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” hit $1.3 billion at the worldwide box office, enough to bump the original adventures of royal sisters Anna and Elsa ($1.28 billion) to the No. 3 spot. But the kingdom of Arendelle still reigns supreme in terms of all things computer-generated. The sequel “Frozen II” was even bigger than the original and stands as the highest-grossing animated movie of all-time with a mighty $1.45 billion. (Disney’s 2019 remake of “The Lion King,” which earned a staggering $1.65 billion, is technically computer-generated, but the studio has categorized the movie as live-action. Thus, it doesn’t have a place on the list of top-animated movies.)
Tim Chan If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. Wordle, the popular online word-guessing game from the New York Times, is now available to play as a board game. Hasbro, maker of popular games like Monopoly and Clue, have introduced Wordle: The Party Game.
EXCLUSIVE: The plight of ‘Confederados’ who left the U.S. for Brazil after the American Civil War will provide the backdrop to Disney drama series Americana.
Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Rebel Wilson is directing her first feature film with musical comedy “The Deb,” a big-screen adaptation of an Australian musical set in the outback. The film is produced by Amanda Ghost, Len Blavatnik, and Gregor Cameron via their company Unigram, which recently produced Apple TV+ movie “Tetris,” and sister outfit AI Film (“I, Tonya”). The project was launched around the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday, at a private event aboard billionaire investor Blavatnik’s yacht, where cast members from the Aussie musical performed a number of songs on the vessel’s upper deck. Blavatnik, sporting a baseball cap with branding for the movie, introduced the singers, making it clear to the intimate gathering aboard his three-floor yacht that he was an enthusiastic backer of the project and, indeed, Wilson.
The Weeknd opened up about his new drama series “The Idol” as the first two episodes premiered at Cannes Film Festival on Monday.
Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Mainland Chinese star Wang Luodan (“The Dead End,” “Struggle,” “The Continent”) and Hong Kong-born Bosco Wong (“Lives of Omission,” “Triumph In The Skies”) head the cast of “My Dearest Stranger.” The high-end suspense drama series is a production fronted by mainland Chinese distributor-producer Hishow Entertainment, which announced the production at the Cannes Market, adjacent to the Cannes Film Festival in France. Based on the best-selling novel “Secret Love,” by Fan Shu and adapted by renowned screenwriter Cao Xueping (“Game Changer”), “My Dearest Stranger” tells a compelling story of Yu Xiao, a housewife who realizes her seemingly perfect husband may have a dark side. Yu decides to cooperate with policeman Song Cheng to find out the truth, while trying to keep her own secrets from the world.