‘Liar’ From ITV and Sundance TV Getting Italian Adaptation

“Liar,” the Scotland-set rape drama from ITV and Sundance TV, is getting an Italian adaptation produced by Indigo Film, the shingle behind Paolo Sorrentino’s Oscar-winner “The Great Beauty.”

The Italian “Liar” redo has been commissioned by Mediaset, Italy’s top private broadcaster – controlled by former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi – as part of the company’s ongoing effort to ramp up scripted content production and improve its quality after several of their local dramas flopped.

Shooting started in Turin this month on the Italian version of “Liar” which is being directed by Gianluca Tavarelli (“The Young Montalbano”) and marks the first adaptation of the British show that in 2017 was ITV’s highest-rated new drama.

The Italian version, titled “Non Mentire,” which translates as “Don’t Lie,” toplines Greta Scarano (“The Name of the Rose”) in the role played in the original by Joanne Froggatt (pictured), as a teacher who goes on a date with a surgeon that prompts an accusation of rape. The accused surgeon is being played in “Non Mentire” by Alessandro Preziosi (“Medici: Masters of Florence”).

The psychological thriller examining a possible date rape from different perspectives of the two lead characters is created by BAFTA- and Golden Globe-nominated producers and screenwriters Harry and Jack Williams.

Thematically, “Liar” is timely in Italy where, under current legislation, non-consensual sex is not automatically classified as rape and alleged rape victims must file complaints within a six-month statute of limitations, a rule that experts say deters alleged victims from coming forward.

“Non Mentire” marks the first high-profile TV drama being handled by Indigo Film, the prominent Rome indie shingle which previously produced groundbreaking cross-platform sitcom “An Imperfect Mom” for pubcaster RAI. “Imperfect Mom” broke Italian stereotypes of how women are depicted on Italian TV and was optioned by ABC for the U.S.

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