The Top Scripted Formats Traveling the World: ‘Your Honor,’ ‘Liar’ and ‘No Activity’ Top List as Global Scripted Adaptations Surge in Popularity

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Top editors are rallying behind Poland’s independent media as it comes under increased scrutiny from the country’s right-wing, nationalist government. In a joint statement, the editors in chief of local outlets such as Fakt, Polityka and Gazeta Radomszczańska as well as international media such as Forbes and Canal+, have said they “declare our unwavering dedication to stand firm and defend the independence of Polish journalism.” “Newsrooms under our leadership will exhibit solidarity and resolutely inform the public about any attempts by the ruling party to exert influence over the media,” reads the statement.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International If you ask most people in the U.K. industry how business is going right now, they’ll likely tell you it’s been agonizingly “slow.” It’s meant to be boom time for production, but this summer, the U.S. writers strike combined with a cost of living crisis is brutally squeezing unscripted and scripted projects. This week, as the clock ticks away on negotiations between American actors union SAG-AFTRA and Hollywood’s collective bargaining agent, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the prevailing thought will be: is all of this about to get much worse? A number of British actors Variety has spoken to say they’ve yet to hear from local actors’ union Equity with any guidance about their situation. That’s likely because it’s being worked out in real time. Paul W. Fleming, general secretary for Equity, has been in Los Angeles for discussions with SAG-AFTRA, which is optimistic about its negotiations with the AMPTP. (He’s also visiting New York to meet with theater union Actors’ Equity.)

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Cold, cold heart, hard done by you. And Glastonbury fans were certainly hard done by Elton John and Britney Spears on Sunday night. Spears was widely rumored to be joining John during his closing headline set at the British music festival, but in her place to sing their hit “Tiny Dancer” remix was — Brandon Flowers. Fans were stunned when The Killers frontman traipsed on stage instead of Spears, especially as the “Baby One More Time” singer had dropped Instagram hints in the lead-up to John’s set that suggested she was in the U.K. On Friday, Spears posted a picture of an oil painting featuring McDonald’s food and a vase of roses with three Union Jack flags as the caption. In another now-deleted post, she reportedly told fans she was heading to London this week, claiming it was for a shopping trip.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Authorities confirmed that human remains have been found near the search area where British actor Julian Sands went missing during a hike in January. The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Dept. confirmed late on Saturday that civilian hikers discovered human remains in the Mt. Baldy wilderness earlier that day. “Fontana Station deputies, along with the Sheriff’s Department’s Emergency Operations Division, responded to the scene,” sheriffs said in a news release. “The decedent was transported to the Coroner’s Office, pending positive identification. Identification should be completed next week at which time we will update this press release. No further details are available at this time.”

There are some pets out there in the world that are worth more money than most people will ever see in their lifetime.

In January 2021, amid COVID-19, a short squeeze of the stock of video game retailer GameStop by a group of Redditors took the news world by storm. Now this Fall, the tale of /wallstreetbets hits the big screen in “Dumb Money,” Craig Gillespie‘s film about the stock tip that went viral.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International BBC Studios has acquired pan-Scandinavian production company STV. The acquisition will help the British production-distribution powerhouse grow its footprint in Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and build out its existing production outfits. BBCS has said the deal is “in response to the growing appetite and opportunity for BBC content in the market.” Based in Copenhagen with offices in Norway and Sweden, STV’s credits include factual entertainment formats such as “Big Love” and “Get Lost Honey.” STV also acts as the local producer for “Long Lost Family,” “Wheel of Fortune” and “Bargain King,” in addition to long-running scripted series “The First Years” across Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Amazon has said its investments have contributed £4.8 billion ($6.1 billion) of gross value — and 16,000 jobs — to the U.K. economy since 2010. This covers the gamut of the online retail giant’s various subsidiaries, including Kindle Direct Publishing, Amazon Publishing, Prime Video, Audible, Amazon Fashion, Amazon Music and Amazon Games, among others. Overall, the company — which revealed the figures on Wednesday — has invested more than £4.2 billion in U.K. creative industries since 2010, and has doubled its investment since 2018. As Prime Video continues to embed in the U.K. creative sector, it can also count the British Film Institute as its next stop. A number of the streamer’s U.K.-shot originals, including “Good Omens” and “Clarkson’s Farm,” will be digitally preserved in the BFI National Archive as part of a new partnership. The Prime Video deal comes almost a year after Netflix reached a similar agreement to induct some of its own originals into the celebrated archive. That deal was struck in September, Variety understands.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International The heartrending search to locate and rescue the Titan submersible before it runs out of its four-day air supply will be the focus of a new fast-turnaround documentary on U.K. broadcaster Channel 5. “Titanic Sub: Lost at Sea” has been scheduled to air on Thursday at 7 p.m. local time. The doc will be presented by 5 News host Dan Walker. The ITN-produced documentary promises to “go beyond” news coverage and bring viewers up to date, while examining the wider context about the voyage, its passengers and the fascination with the Titanic shipwreck. The film will also talk to experts and look at the rise of extreme tourism.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Prime Video has revealed its top traveling non-English local originals in the history of the service, with Spanish YA romance “My Fault” and French crime thriller “Medellín” topping the list. Both are feature films that launched in the last two weeks across Prime Video’s footprint in 240 countries around the world. Interestingly, both titles have more than 75% of their viewership coming from outside their country of origin (Spain for “My Fault,” and France for “Medellín”), though Prime Video hasn’t disclosed any further metrics related to ratings or impressions. Of the list (available in full below), 60% are movies and 40% are TV series.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International Duncan Heath’s legendary London agency Independent Talent Group is coming off the sales block. Variety understands that the U.K. company has secured a private equity buyer, and that a due diligence period is currently underway. The specific private equity firm involved in the deal isn’t currently known, though sources indicate that a well-known and respected entertainment executive is involved in the outfit. Sources tell Variety that CAA was at one point talking to Independent Talent, but that the U.S. agency — which acquired ICM Partners for $750 million last year — pulled away from a sales conversation in recent months. Other interested parties that have been in the mix in the last year are believed to include WME and Wasserman.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International The next season of “Bad Sisters” is slowly taking shape, even amid a writers strike. Creator Sharon Horgan confirmed that she’s currently writing Season 2 of the hit Apple TV+ series “Bad Sisters,” which will continue the story of the Garvey sisters after they successfully got rid of their toxic brother-in-law Jean-Paul (played by a deliciously evil Claes Bang). Horgan, who was speaking at the Banff World Media Festival, is likely able to continue working on the U.K.-filmed show — which she writes alongside Brett Baer and Dave Finkel — because she has a local contract in place with Apple TV+ for “Bad Sisters” rather than a WGA-governed deal. Under the current rules, U.K. writers can continue working on existing projects (under the jurisdiction of non-WGA contracts) with “struck” companies such as Apple, but can’t take on new work.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International When talent agency UTA officially opens shop in London on Thursday, it will be the latest American agency heavyweight to have a brick-and-mortar presence in the U.K. The 28,000-square-foot office at 1 Newman Street straddles Fitzrovia and trendy Soho. Designed by Gensler and Modus Workspace, the headquarters will be home to UTA’s music business as well as film and TV agents, and those working across everything from production arts to podcasting. The London office, which will be the agency’s European hub, will continue to be headed up by music agents Neil Warnock MBE and Obi Asika. UTA first carved out a presence in London in 2015 when it acquired British music practice The Agency Group. In 2021, the company expanded its footprint in music with the purchase of London-based Echo Location Talent Agency.

Old friends Natasha Lyonne and Melanie Lynskey have lots to reminisce about, having first forged a bond during the filming of the 1999 Kiss-inspired movie “Detroit Rock City.” But their most memorable on-screen pairing was in another movie that premiered that year — director Jamie Babbit’s queer cult classic “But I’m a Cheerleader.” A quarter century into their friendship, Lynskey and Lyonne appreciate that both of their careers are peaking now that they’re in their 40s. On Showtime’s “Yellowjackets,” Lynskey plays Shauna, a reckless New Jersey housewife traumatized by her experiences in the wilderness as a teenager. In the Peacock howdunit “Poker Face,” Lyonne portrays human lie-detector Charlie Cale, who solves crimes as she traverses the country while on the run.

Cashing in. Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss‘ cheating scandal came with an unexpected paycheck for several Vanderpump Rules stars.

A couple travelling the world had their plans devastatingly put on hold after their BMW bike was stolen.

Meghann Fahy and Elizabeth Olsen are bonding over their craft.

We hope you have your popcorn ready because you’re gonna need it tonight!!

Naman Ramachandran BBC Studios has licensed the immensely popular “Top Gear” format to Finland’s Nelonen channel and Ruutu streaming service to create a Finnish adaptation of the long-running and Emmy-winning series. The Finnish adaptation will be presented by comedian, musician and author Ismo Leikola, former elite Ice hockey winger Teemu Selänne and actor Christoffer Strandberg. It will air in the spring of 2024. Set in the world of cars and driving, the show will see Leikola, Selänne and Strandberg compete in various car-related challenges to determine who among them is the ultimate driver. The license to Finland is the 11th adaptation of the format globally. “Top Gear” began in the U.K. in 1977, where it has run for 33 seasons. However, the U.K. version has been paused after host Andrew Flintoff was involved in an accident on the show’s test track in December 2022.

Owen Gleiberman Chief Film Critic If you’ve ever wondered when it was that Michel Gondry, the gifted French director of “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” became the world’s most annoying filmmaker, you might say the answer is, “He always was.” Yet no one, including me, quite thinks of him that way. That’s because the few works of his that have come to prominence possess a special combination of facility and charm. I adore “Eternal Sunshine,” a virtuoso movie that bends your brain and breaks your heart at the same time. You might simply choose to characterize it as the masterpiece of screenwriter Charlie Kaufman, but the truth is that Gondry directed it ­— the leaps in time, the emotionally convulsive performances of Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet — with a masterful sense of play and gravitational control.