Annika Scores New Global Sales & Second Season Renewal

Alibi and Masterpiece have co-commissioned a second season of Annika, as All3Media International completed sales for the series across three continents.

Season two of the Black Camel detective drama will see the return of DI Annika Strandhed as she continues to investigate unexplained murders discovered in Scottish waterways. New sales for the show have been closed in Europe, Africa and Asia.

Sky Deutschland has acquired Annika in Germany, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland in a first-window deal. ZDF picked up a second-window deal in Germany. In Italy, Warner Bros. Discovery acquired it for the free-TV channel Giallo. Annika will also air on France Télévisions Outre Mer 1ère in France, AXN (Sony Pictures Television Networks) in Spain, RSI in Italian-speaking Switzerland, Síminn in Iceland, HRT in Croatia and COSMOTE in Greece.

Outside of Europe, BritBox picked up the series in South Africa and Australia. BritBox took the second window in Australia, following the show’s Australian premiere on ABC. Sky New Zealand also acquired the series, and ABC Commercial signed a home-entertainment deal covering Australia and New Zealand. In Asia, WOWOW took the rights in Japan.

In the U.S., Annika’s first season is set to have its broadcast premiere on PBS Masterpiece on October 16.

Annika’s second season will see Nicola Walker (The Split, Unforgotten), Jamie Sives (Guilt, Frontier), Katie Leung (The Nest, Roadkill) and Ukweli Roach (The Midwich Cuckoos, Blindspot) reprise their roles as detectives in the Marine Homicide Unit (MHU). Nick Walker will continue to write the series.

“Nicola Walker absolutely owns the role of Annika, who comes across as smart, eccentric and funny,” said Susanne Simpson, Masterpiece executive producer. “She leads an extraordinary cast of characters that makes this show unique.”

“We are all looking forward to fighting crime on sea and land with the MHU for a second series, and there are secrets closer to home for Annika that will have to be faced,” Nicola Walker said. “It’s going to be a bumpy ride!”

Philippa Collie Cousins, senior drama commissioner at UKTV, said, “I’m thrilled to get the team back together on a second series of this refreshing, character-led crime drama. Nicola has such an authentic approach; she brings the character of Annika to life in a unique way, and by breaking the fourth wall with conviction and wit, she adds both real depth and laugh-out-loud moments. The first series stole the audience’s hearts, and the second series will, too!”

“The response to this series has been incredible—Alibi viewers have really embraced the dry humor of Nick Walker’s original series,” added Emma Ayech, Alibi channel director. “We are thrilled to be bringing the wonderful Nicola Walker and the whole Annika team back for a second series. I can’t wait for the Alibi audience to step back into Annika’s world once again.”

Arabella Page Croft, executive producer for Black Camel Pictures, said, “The new series will see Annika and her brilliant MHU uncover bodies in Edinburgh, Glasgow and as far as the Hebridean island of Jura, keeping in high literary company with the likes of Robert Louis Stevenson, George Orwell and Walter Scott to help solve the cases. Nick Walker is again at the helm, so this series promises more twisty crimes and grisly reveals while delving into our exciting serial hooks from the first series.”

“We are delighted to be setting sail with our brilliant partners UKTV, Black Camel Pictures and Masterpiece for a second series of Annika,” added David Swetman, senior VP of content and commercial strategy at All3Media International. “A compelling, unique detective drama, Annika is an exciting addition to our best-selling sleuth/detective slate, and we’re thrilled the first series has already sold to such a number of renowned international partners. It’s a testament to the hard work of the whole Annika team. I’m excited for audiences to see the new cases and adventures we have in store for series two.”