DRG Presents Second Season of State of the Union

CANNES: A sophomore season of the sketch-comedy series State of the Union, starring Tracey Ullman, is on offer from the Digital Rights Group (DRG), which has already confirmed a number of deals ahead of MIPTV.

State of the Union, commissioned by Showtime in the U.S., has seven new half-hour episodes, adding to a first season of five 30-minute episodes. Territories acquiring both series include Israel (DBS Satellite Services), Norway (NRK), Sweden (TV4 AB), the Middle East and North Africa (Gulf DTH Entertainment), Finland (Channel 4), Australia (ABC), Brazil (Globosat) and MNET (Africa). DVD rights have been picked up in Australia (ABC) and Benelux (Just Licensing).

DRG will be offering both seasons of State of the Union at MIPTV, with Tracey Ullman and executive producer Allan McKeown on hand to meet international buyers. The show takes a satirical look at a day in the life of America, poking fun at everything from the country’s celebrity obsession to its 24-hour news culture, featuring impersonations and parodies of original characters.

McKeown commented, “State of the Union is a huge success in the U.S., with Showtime proving to be the perfect home for the series; the ratings and reviews have been terrific. It is very satisfying to see the show become equally popular with international viewers through its distribution by DRG. We are confident that the globally relevant and recognisable humour that runs through State of the Union will gain an even wider audience following MIPTV.”

Chris Bartlett, the VP of sales for DRG, added, “We have received fantastic feedback from the international broadcasters that have acquired series one of State of the Union, highlighted by their pick up of the new series. We are delighted to welcome Tracey and Allan back to Cannes and hope to conclude further deals at the market.”

DRG also distributes Mumbai Calling, another series from Allan McKeown. The prime-time comedy is filmed entirely on location in Mumbai, India, and is written by a team of writers in the U.K. It will air this spring on ITV.