HBO & BBC to Co-Produce Richard Gadd’s Next Drama Series

HBO and the BBC are co-producing the new drama series Lions (w.t.), from creator and executive producer Richard Gadd, fresh off the heels of his Netflix hit Baby Reindeer.

In the series, when Niall’s estranged “brother” Ruben shows up at his wedding, it leads to an explosion of violence that catapults viewers back through their lives. Spanning almost 40 years from the 1980s to the present day, the series will cover the highs and lows of the brothers’ relationship, from their meeting as teenagers to their falling out as adults.

Gadd is working with Alexandra Brodski (Somewhere Boy, Rivals) and Eshref Reybrouck (Ferry: The Series, Cheyenne & Lola), who will direct. The HBO-BBC series is produced by Wendy Griffin (Limbo, The Lost King) and executive produced by Tally Garner and Morven Reid for Mam Tor Productions (a Banijay UK company), Gadd and Gaynor Holmes for the BBC, with Gavin Smith for BBC Scotland.

The series is made by Mam Tor Productions for HBO, BBC One, BBC Scotland and BBC iPlayer. Banijay Rights handles international distribution outside the U.K. and Ireland and the U.S. Lions is supported by Screen Scotland.

Gadd, creator, writer and executive producer, said: “Ordering an HBO box set of The Sopranos, The Wire or Oz and watching it from start to finish were some of the happiest moments of my childhood. Since then, it has always been a dream of mine to work with HBO and be part of their iconic roster of shows. I am so grateful to Francesca Orsi, Kara Buckley and Clint LaVigne for taking this chance on the show and on Ruben and Niall, too, who—despite growing up in a dead-end Scottish town—would be absolutely pinching themselves at this! I cannot wait to get started.”

Kara Buckley, senior VP of HBO drama programming, said: “We are tremendously excited to partner with the BBC and Richard Gadd, whose remarkable talent continues to make waves across the globe. With this new, gripping and evocative series, we are proud to welcome Richard to the HBO family.”

Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, added: “We are delighted that HBO is joining us to bring Richard Gadd’s exquisite Lions scripts to the screen. This is bold, brilliant, one-of-a-kind storytelling, and we can’t wait for viewers to see it.”

Louise Thornton, head of commissioning for BBC Scotland, said: “Lions is a superb example of how we can bring high-quality storytelling and content rooted in Scotland to audiences across the U.K. and the world. We’re delighted to be working with our BBC colleagues, Screen Scotland and HBO to bring Richard’s truly innovative scripts to life.”

Tally Garner, managing director of Mam Tor Productions, added: “Morven and I are utterly delighted to be partnering with HBO alongside the BBC and can’t wait to bring Richard Gadd’s incredible vision to the screen. The quality and prestige of HBO is world-renowned, and we are so grateful to the HBO Drama team and the BBC for supporting us on this journey.”