ID Partnering with James Patterson on Scripted Series

LOS ANGELES: Investigation Discovery (ID) has clinched a development deal with author James Patterson to write and executive produce a six-part scripted series for the network.

The series will be based on all-new, ID-branded, true-crime stories written for Patterson’s new line of novella-length stories, BookShots. ID-branded BookShots will be released in conjunction with the on-air premiere of this series, which is slated to debut on ID in 2017.

“As the best-selling author, around the world, since 2001, there is no bigger name than James Patterson,” said Henry Schleiff, group president of  Investigation Discovery, American Heroes Channel and Destination America. “Patterson is the ultimate storyteller, and for a television network known for its own powerful storytelling, to now have him as our ‘partner in crime’ is truly a match made in heaven for his readers and ID’s viewers.”

Patterson added, “Imagine me saying this, but truth can definitely be stranger than fiction. My plan is that we will create a groundbreaking series that shatters the true-crime mold and attracts the widest possible audience for Investigation Discovery, and also BookShots.”

Additionally, ID is working with Weinstein Television, Jupiter Entertainment and American Media, Inc. (AMI)—parent company of RadarOnline and TheNational ENQUIRER—on a three-part series that explores the still-unsolved JonBenét Ramsey case. The three-night TV event, tentatively titled JonBenét: An American Murder Mystery, kicks off September 12. 

ID greenlit a new one-hour special, Black and Blue, which looks at the current state of police affairs and race relations. The piece is produced exclusively for ID by NBC News’s Peacock Productions.

Meanwhile, ID has set the world TV premiere for the doc Southwest of Salem: The Story of the San Antonio Four for October 15. The documentary explores the story of four Latina lesbians who were wrongfully convicted of aggravated sexual assault and indecency.