ABC & BBC Attached To Aussie Spin-Off Of ‘Death In Paradise’; Canal+ Boards German Drama; New Asian Series Unveiled at TCCF; Monumental Options Amanda Craig Book — Global Briefs

Jesse Whittock, Liz Shackleton and Zac Ntim
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BBC Acquires Aussie Spin-Off Of ‘Death In Paradise’

The BBC will air Return to Paradise, an Australia-set spin-off of the long-running series Death in Paradise. Filming next year, the six-part series will be produced by BBC Studios Productions Australia alongside Death in Pardise maker Red Planet Pictures for the ABC, in association with the BBC. Set in the idyllic, beachside hamlet of Dolphin Cove,the series will be a “gripping, twisting and fiendishly clever murder mysteries – all against the spectacular backdrop of the Australian coastal landscape.” The plot follows Australian ex-pat Mackenzie Clarke, the seemingly golden girl of the London Metropolitan police force, who is suddenly forced to up sticks and move back to her childhood home of Dolphin Cove. When a murder takes place in Dolphin Cove, Mack can’t help but put her inspired detective brilliance to good use. The series is created and executive produced by Peter Mattessi, James Hall and Robert Thorogood, Return to Paradise will be written by Mattessi alongside Elizabeth Coleman, Alexandra Collier and Kodie Bedford.

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Canal+ Boards German Thriller Series ‘Night In Pardise’

Canal+ has boarded six-part thriller series Night in Paradise and taken rights in several European territories. The series, from Moritz Polter’s ITV Studios-owned Windlight Pictures, is based on the Frank Schmolke graphic novel and centers on a nightmarish world where lost souls battle for their lives. It star Jürgen Vogel (The Wave)and Lea Drinda (The Gryphon) as a father-daughter duo who go on a nocturnal horror trip through a deceitful metropolis. The show, which will run on the Canal+ app, was Starz’s first German original series, ordered before the streamer pulled out of Europe. It’s supported by German Motion Picture Fund, Medienboard, Berlin-Brandenburg, the Belgian Tax Shelter Regime and Wallimage. Belga Productions handled physical production in Belgium. ITV Studios is the International distributor.

Taiwan’s Screenworks Asia Launches Romance Series ‘Marriage Exposed’

Taipei-based Screenworks Asia, Strong Productions and Chou’s Entertainment are launching adult romance series Marriage Exposed at the on-going Taiwan Creative Content Fest (TCCF). Currently in post-production, the series marks the comeback of Taiwanese star Jerry Yen (Meteor Garden) following a 13-year hiatus, and also stars Ariel Lin (In Time With You). Screenworks Asia is handling international distribution of the series, and launched a teaser poster at TCCF, while Strong Productions is handling distribution in China. The story explores the “truth of modern relationships and contemporary marriage”.

China’s iQiyi Starts Production On First Thai Original ‘My Stand-In’

Chinese streamer iQiyi has started production on its first Thai-language drama series, My Stand-In, which it is co-producing with Thailand’s YYDS Entertainment. Thai actors Poompat Iam-Saman and Phuripan Sapsangsawat star in the BL (boy’s love) series, based on Chinese web novel, Stand-In Ship, which has racked up more than one billion views. Banchorn Vorasataree and Kongkiat Khomsiri are directing with Wan Thabkrajang (I Feel You Linger in the Air) on board as executive producer. The story revolves around a stunt double who falls in love with the son of a wealthy family. It will premiere worldwide exclusively on iQiyi International in 2024.

Monumental Television Options Amanda Craig Book

ITV Studios’ Monumental Television, the production company behind critically acclaimed shows such as Ghosts, Maryland and Harlots has optioned the rights to The Three Graces, the latest book from British novelist and short-story writer, Amanda Craig. Monumental have said development will soon star on the adaptation, which centres on three very different friends – Ruth, Diana and Marta – who have retired to the sunshine in Tuscany. When one of their neighbours, Enzo, shoots an illegal migrant from his bedroom one night, it triggers a series of events that embroil old and young, rich and poor, native and foreign. Over the course of two weeks, all those involved face difficult choices as they grapple not only with the present dangers but their own pasts, and realise that the realities of modern life make it harder and harder to believe that there is more that unites us than what keeps us apart. The option deal for The Three Graces was brokered by Anna Weguelin on behalf of Cathryn Summerhayes at the Curtis Brown Group.

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