FME Secures Rights to Comedy Central Show

LONDON, August 21: FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) has
acquired the international distribution and format rights to Comedy Central’s
first unscripted competition show, Reality Bites Back.

The deal for the half-hour series excludes the U.S. and
Canada. Produced by 3Ball Productions, Reality Bites Back sees ten comedians compete in a spoof of a different
reality show in each episode. Michael Ian Black will serve as the host,
introducing parodies of programs such as American Gladiators, Big
Brother and So You Think You Can
Dance. Contestants are paid for each
episode they remain in the competition with the winner of the series receiving
$50,000.

David
Ellender, the CEO of FME, said: “Reality Bites Back is a great edition to our MIPCOM slate. It's exactly
what we look for in a comedy/entertainment show, it's both courageous and
outrageous, original and sophisticated in its sense of humor.”

David Bernath, the senior VP of programming for Comedy
Central, said: "With reality television having become so pervasive across
the globe, the time was ripe for a parody of the genre. The brilliance of Reality
Bites Back is that it satirizes and pokes
fun at the staples of the reality genre while at the same time adding itself to
the pantheon of such series.”

—By Jackie Stewart