Sky Series ‘Juan Carlos: Downfall Of A King’ Sells To ARD & Canal+

Jesse Whittock
·2 min read
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EXCLUSIVE: Sky’s docu-series Juan Carlos: Downfall of the King has been snapped up for German free TV a day after launching on Canal+ in France.

The four-part series’ producer, Gebrueder Beetz Filmproduktion, has struck a deal directly with German compatriot network ARD for all four episodes plus a 90-minute special that is soon delivering. The special will launch in primetime in an 8.15pm local slot on the Das Erste network on January 15, 2024, with the series added to streamer ARD Mediathek.

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Juan Carlos has already been seen on German pay-TV through Sky Deutschland, which landed rights after its UK stablemate ordered the show earlier this year, and on streaming via Sky’s app WOW.

The ARD deal closely follows a pick-up by French pay-TV service Canal+, which acquired the series from distributor NBCUniversal Global Distribution. Canal+ launched episodes one and two last night on its Sur Planète channel and the series has been made available on the MyCanal streaming service.

The show first launched in UK on Sky, which originally ordered the show from Leonine-owned Gebrueder Beetz, in July. Distribution of the show has been wide, with Sky playing it in the UK, Germany and Italy and SkyShowtime streaming it in numerous European territories. It has aired in around 30 territories, including in Israel and China.

Christian Beetz, co-founder of German production house Gebrueder Beetz, told Deadline how making the series had sent him and his team on a “nightmare trip.” They believe their phones were tapped and emails intercepted as they investigated the circumstances of the fall from grace of Juan Carlos I.

The former Spanish royal had long been a globally celebrated hero, credited for leading his country out of Franco’s dictatorship into a parliamentary monarchy and making a decisive contribution to its transformation into a modern European state. However, he was forced to abdicate the throne in 2014 after allegations of corruption and abuse of power came to light. He eventually fled into exile in Abu Dhabi in 2020.

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