The Level Secures ABC Australia Slot

CANNES: DRG has closed a deal with ABC in Australia for the drama The Level.

The 6×1-hour event thriller was originally produced for ITV1 in the U.K. From Hillbilly Films, The Level stars Philip Glenister (Life of Mars, Outcast), Karla Crome (Misfits), Laura Haddock (The Inbetweeners Movie, Da Vinci’s Demons) and Rob James-Collier (Downton Abbey).

Ahead of MIPCOM, DRG landed deals on the title with RLJ for DVD rights in the U.K. and Ireland. The Level was also presold to UTV Ireland, TVNZ in New Zealand and DBS Satellite Services in Israel. Recent deals have also been concluded with NOS in Holland and VRT in Belgium.

Dallas Krueger, the manager of acquisitions at ABC TV, commented: “The Level combines excellent storytelling with a talented, high-profile cast and is beautifully produced. It is just the sort of high-end, thoughtful crime drama that appeals to our audience, so I am delighted to have acquired this brilliant series for ABC.”

Joel Atley, the senior VP sales for the Asia Pacific at DRG, commented: “British crime drama has a strong reputation in the international marketplace so we always anticipated a good degree of interest in The Level in Cannes. However, the talented and multi-award-winning team at Hillbilly, who between them have worked on films such as The Fully Monty and The Crying Game, has elevated the genre to a whole new ‘level’ and produced a gripping, edge-of-your-seat thriller that is very much in demand.”

Kate Norrish, executive producer of The Level and joint managing director of Hillbilly Films, said: “We are truly delighted that The Level will now be seen in Australia and remain grateful for DRG’s continued support and its faith in us and our series. There is so much amazing content available at MIPCOM that we are overwhelmed with the interest the show has received.”