Spike to Profile Pirate Hunters

NEW YORK: As the U.S. Navy Seal’s rescue of a cargo ship captain from Somali pirates made headlines this morning, Spike TV announced it was teaming with 44 Blue Productions for a pilot for a new reality series focusing on the efforts to battle piracy off the coast of Africa.

Pirate Hunters: USN is being produced by 44 Blue, the team behind The True Story of Black Hawk Down and Lockup, and Adam Friedman, whose credits include Vertical Ascent.  It will provide an up-close and behind-the-scenes look at the U.S. Navy operations to eliminate piracy in the Gulf of Aden. The Navy has granted the producers extensive access from their base in Djibouti and on the open waters.

"We are thrilled to be front and center with the Navy on such an important mission," said Sharon Levy, the senior VP of original series for Spike. "The access we have will really give our viewers the kind of heart-stopping action they have come to expect from Spike programming."

"Piracy off the coast of Africa is a real and deadly threat," added Rasha Drachkovitch, the president and founder of 44 Blue Productions. "With Pirate Hunters: USN, our goal is to capture that drama for the TV audience in order to highlight the heroic work undertaken by the US Navy every day in this fight against terrorism."