SPT, eOne Partner for The Firm

LOS ANGELES/TORONTO: John Grisham’s bestselling novel The Firm is being adapted into a 22-episode television drama by Entertainment One Television (eOne) for Sony Pictures Television’s (SPT) AXN channels worldwide.

Produced by eOne Television in association with SPT networks and Paramount Pictures, The Firm will air in more than 125 territories on the AXN networks. Production is slated to begin in Canada in July, and the casting process is currently under way. The two-hour pilot picks up ten years after where the 1993 feature adaptation with Tom Cruise left off, as lawyer Mitch McDeere and his family emerge from the federal witness protection program that has been protecting them from the Chicago mob.

The television and digital/DVD rights for the show outside of AXN markets will be retained by eOne, which will handle distribution worldwide, including in the U.S. and Canada.

“SPT’s networks set out to raise the bar this year, both in the programming acquisitions we make and the original series we commission," said Marie Jacobson, the executive VP of programming and production for networks at SPT. "We have found our next big tentpole for AXN in The Firm. Working with John Grisham and Lukas Reiter to bring John’s best-known work to television is a dream partnership and a great forward step for SPT’s network ambitions around the world.”

“The development of this series marks the latest success for eOne Television as we continue to collaborate with the best creative talent in the business to produce premium, original content for broadcast partners around the globe,” said John Morayniss, the CEO of eOne Television. “We’re delighted to be partnering with SPT which we believe is a perfect partner to bring this much-anticipated series to audiences around the world.”