HBO Secures Thorne for Asia

LONDON: HBO has picked up Content Television’s crime thriller series Thorne, based on the bestselling novels by Mark Billingham, for broadcast throughout Asia in 2012.

HBO picked up Thorne: Sleepyhead and Thorne: Scaredy Cat, which star David Morrissey (State of Play), Natascha McElhone (Californication) and Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy). Thorne has been licensed to more than 145 territories. It is produced by Jolyon Symonds and Greg Dummett and is a Stagereel/Cité-Amérique co-production in association with Movie Central, The Movie Network, 87 Films and Artists Studio.

Magdalene Ew, the senior VP of marketing, creative and content at HBO Asia, said, "We are pleased to acquire Thorne from Content Television. Available first and exclusively in Asia on HBO Asia’s network of channels, this crime thriller drama franchise will add to our diverse content offerings.”

Diana Zakis, the VP of sales of Latin America and Asia at Content Television, added, “We are very pleased to have Thorne debut with HBO in Asia while continuing to attract deals in numerous territories. The demand for high quality crime drama remains strong in the international marketplace and Thorne has all the hallmarks of a globally successful title, with its internationally renowned cast, easily translatable storylines and proven ratings success.”