Elizabeth Guider Reports: eOne Touts New Network Shows

LOS ANGELES: The one “designated survivor” (this year) of vertical integration is the intrepid indie player Entertainment One (eOne), which has clinched two network pick-ups, both on ABC, Designated Survivor and Conviction.

Designated Survivor, toplining Kiefer Sutherland, and Conviction, starring Haley Atwell, both hail from The Mark Gordon Company, which eOne has a majority stake in.

“Both shows have already sparked a lot of interest among international buyers,” John Morayniss, the CEO of eOne Television, told World Screen Newsflash on Sunday.

The pilots were screened for about 400 buyers on Saturday at the Harmony Gold theater in Hollywood. The big Canadian broadcasters, who always come to the Screenings to buy in bulk, were among the attendees. (That market has been rattled of late by the buyout of Global TV by conglomerate Corus Entertainment, though both it and rival CTV are bent on spending less in Hollywood given the relatively depressed ad market in the Great White North.)‎

Sutherland, who also has an executive producer credit on Designated Survivor, is expected to play an energetic role in promoting the series he stars in globally. He is already committed to hitting the Croisette in Cannes for MIPCOM in October.

Conviction will air in the coveted (and highly competitive) Monday 10 p.m. time period stateside, while Designated Survivor  is slotted for the 10 p.m. berth on Wednesdays. 

“With these two network dramas—our first big network prime-time deals—we now have the biggest slate we’ve ever handled,” Morayniss explained. He expects the company, which is Canadian-owned but publicly traded in London, to double in size and capacity over the next couple of years and set up additional arrangements with other creative producers and writers. (The prolific Gordon is also behind Ray Donovan on Showtime and Criminal Minds on CBS, among others.)‎

Morayniss told the Newsflash that given the company’s new higher profile and creative auspices like Gordon’s, it can now command “top-end pricing” for its content. (Aside from the two network pick-ups, eOne boasts several series currently airing on cabler AMC, including Turn and Halt and Catch Fire.)‎

Still, broadcast dramas are the prime content that overseas buyers look for from Hollywood, with A-tier product bringing in as much as $1.5 million to $2 million an episode.  

‎Although both Warner Bros. and Sony Pictures Television can claim to be independent suppliers to the four big broadcast networks, both are parts of major conglomerates and enjoy the benefits thereof, including deals with a plethora of talented producers based on their lots. Lionsgate, another Canuck-originated company, is the only other true “indie” with a network.

Visit World Screen’s fall season grid here for synopses, trailers and a listing of new and returning shows by studio.