ITV Studios Enters Spain Via Cattleya; ‘The Midwich Cuckoos’ Cast; Newen Acquires Spain’s iZen – Global Briefs

Tom Grater
·3 min read

ITV Studios Sets Up Shop In Spain With Netflix Exec
Cattleya, the ITV Studios-backed Italian producer behind Gomorrah, is launching Spanish subsidiary Cattleya Producciones and has hired Netflix’s Arturo Díaz as managing director. The company will be ITV Studios’ first scripted producer in Spain. Díaz was a director of local language originals at Netflix, working on shows including Las Chicas de Cable, the streamer’s longest-running non-U.S. series. Cattleya Producciones will be overseen by Cattleya founder and co-CEO Riccardo Tozzi, alongside his co-CEOs Giovanni Stabilini and Marco Chimenz. Lisa Perrin, managing director of international production at ITV Studios, will also have oversight of the outfit. ITV Studios will distribute its drama series internationally.

Sky Sets Cast For ‘The Midwich Cuckoos’
Keeley Hawes (Bodyguard), and Max Beesley (The Outsider) are to lead the cast of Sky’s modern-day adaptation of John Wyndham’s sci-fi novel The Midwich Cuckoos. The series is written by David Farr, the British writer behind The Night Manager and Hanna, and centers on a British town where women fall pregnant with alien children. Produced by ITV Studios-backed Route 24 and Snowed-In Productions in association with Sky Studios, other cast includes Aisling Loftus (A Discovery of Witches), Ukweli Roach (Blindspot), Synnøve Karlsen (Last Night In Soho), Lara Rossi (Robin Hood), Lewis Reeves (I May Destroy You), Rebekah Staton (Raised by Wolves), and Anneika Rose (Line of Duty). Sasha Hails, Namsi Khan, and Laura Lomas are co-writers. Alice Troughton (Baghdad Central) is the lead director, with Jennifer Perrott (Gentleman Jack) serving as director. The executive producers are Marc Samuelson and Robert Cheek for Route 24 and Ruth Kenley-Letts and Neil Blair for Snowed-In Productions. Series producer is Eliza Mellor.

More from Deadline

Newen Buys Spanish Outfit iZen
French production and distribution group Newen has entered the Spanish market by acquiring a majority stake in iZen group, a local production player. A merger between Zebra Producciones and Veralia Contenidos formed iZen in 2017, and the group has produced more than 1400 hours for Spanish national and regional channels, including El Cid, the Amazon series, and Netflix reality show Insiders. The group also encompasses Europroducciones TV, Boca a Boca, Proima, Newco and Hill Valley. The company has a footprint in the UK market via partnerships with English indies Chalkboard, Clapperboard, and Storyboard. Jose Velasco and Sara Fernández-Velasco remain partners and directors of iZen Group following the Newen deal. “The arrival of iZen in the Newen group marks a major step in our development,” said Romain Bessi, managing director of Newen. “These new talents will strengthen the group’s creativity. It is a pleasure to work with Jose, Sara and their teams, whom we know well from previous collaborations. Newen is present in all genres and in many more territories to come. With this acquisition, we are now one of the major European players in production and distribution.

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.