To say it was a challenging year for the scripted business would be putting it mildly. The writers\u2019 and actors\u2019 strikes in the U.S. led to protracted delays, compounding the climate of angst in place since the streamers upended their models again. The good news? More opportunities for partnerships and new kinds of deals. And with commissioning activity having dipped, acquisitions are likely to tick up in 2024 as cash-strapped broadcasters and platforms look for smarter ways to do more with less.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Despite the challenges of 2023, M&A continued to reshape the sector. As the year came to a close, Lionsgate completed its acquisition of Entertainment One (eOne) and announced a plan to split its television and film and media networks and OTT segments, with Lionsgate Studios to be set up as a separate publicly traded entity. Banijay significantly expanded its scripted business in 2023, acquiring The Forge; taking stakes in Belgium\u2019s jonnydepony, James Norton and Kitty Kaletsky\u2019s Rabbit Track Pictures and Sir Lenny Henry\u2019s Esmerelda; and backing Conker Pictures in the U.K. and the new French label Screen Line Productions.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Other M&A key moves included Kino Lorber and First Look Media forming a new joint venture to house MHz Choice and Topic; 5th Planet Games and Skybound Entertainment launching a joint acquisition for the Nordic production company Sagafilm; Peter Chernin\u2019s The North Road Company making its first major international acquisition with the Turkish film and TV producer Karga Seven Pictures; Mediawan investing in 24 25 Films; and The Mediapro Studio adding to its group of companies Cimarr\u00f3n, a producer with bases in Uruguay, Argentina and Mexico. BBC Studios introduced the new scripted production label River Pictures, led by Andrew Morrissey and Michael Parke. And Fifth Season-backed Blink49 Studios, led by John Morayniss, made a significant investment in Canadian production outfit Front Street Pictures. Meanwhile, Fremantle aligned with the Israel-based IBI Investment House to launch a \u20ac150 million ($164 million) fund to finance scripted television and film projects.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Distributors and producers of scale also expanded their roster of talent deals in 2023. Of note, Greg Berlanti signed a new overall deal with Warner Bros. Television Group, ensuring that Berlanti Productions will remain based at Warner Bros. for its television operations into the year 2027. Fremantle secured a first-look deal with Nine Hours, the new production label set up by\u00a0All Quiet on the Western Front\u00a0<\/em>director Edward Berger and partner Luke Rivett. Sony Pictures Television clinched a multiyear producing deal with \u00c1lvaro Morte through his production company, 300 Pistolas. Cineflix Studios landed a first-look deal with Canadian scripted producer December Films. Producer Patrick Daly and his Caledonia Productions production house signed a first-look deal with Fremantle\u2019s Passenger. Ascendant Fox, the production outfit behind the BBC One\u00a0Boiling Point<\/em>\u00a0series and movie, inked a development deal with BBC Studios.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Amid cost woes and delays, scripted formats had a banner year across the globe, with a few notable hotspots. In Turkey, for example, Dori Media Group licensed the remake rights for the Israeli drama\u00a0Shtisel\u00a0<\/em>to OGM Pictures, and FOX Turkey rolled out a local version of\u00a0Without Family<\/em>\u00a0from Nippon TV. Turkish series also caught the imagination of producers and broadcasters around the world. The drama\u00a0Never Let Go<\/em>, from Global Agency, was localized for Antena 1 in Romania. An Indian adaptation of Global Agency\u2019s\u00a01001 Nights<\/em>\u00a0launched on Sony Entertainment Television and SonyLIV. India proved to be a hotspot for remakes from other territories, too. Banijay\u2019s Endemol Shine India is working with Saif Ali Khan and his Black Knight Films production banner on a local version of the hit Danish\/Swedish drama\u00a0Bron\/Broen<\/em>\u00a0(The Bridge<\/em>). All3Media International signed a format deal for The Forge\u2019s drama\u00a0Dark Money<\/em>\u00a0on SonyLIV and aligned with BBC Studios India Production for two adaptations, including Shameless<\/em>. Korea also emerged as a hub of scripted format acquisitions and sales. Seoul-based Something Special optioned Israel\u2019s\u00a0Hostages<\/em>. The Korean production company Next Entertainment World acquired the rights to adapt\u00a0Orphan Black<\/em>\u00a0from Boat Rocker. True CJ Creations is working on Thai adaptations of several CJ ENM hit titles, beginning with a localized remake of\u00a0Black Dog<\/em>. CJ ENM also inked a deal with Firebird Pictures for a remake of the Korean drama format\u00a0Train<\/em>\u00a0in the U.K. NHK Enterprises and the South Korean production house Big Ocean ENM inked an agreement for an adaptation of the Japanese drama\u00a0I\u2019ll Still Love You Ten Years from Now<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Elsewhere, BBC Studios\u2019\u00a0Doctor Foster<\/em>\u00a0is being remade in Japan by Nippon TV. FOX gave a straight-to-series order to the medical procedural drama\u00a0Doc<\/em>, based on the Italian series\u00a0Doc\u2014Nelle tue mani<\/em>\u00a0created by Lux Vide. The Canadian drama\u00a0Plan B<\/em>\u00a0secured a local treatment in Germany for ZDF. All3Media International\u2019s\u00a0Informer\u00a0<\/em>was remade for NDR, ARD Degeto, ARTE and NRK. Banijay France\u2019s Terence Films and G\u00e9t\u00e9v\u00e9 Productions co-produced\u00a0Rivi\u00e8re-Perdue<\/em>, an adaptation of the Spanish crime thriller\u00a0La Caza. Monteperdido<\/em>, for TF1. Global Station acquired RCN\u2019s\u00a0Caf\u00e9 con Aroma de Mujer<\/em>\u00a0format through Orasi Media for Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore. Nippon TV secured a deal for its award-winning drama series\u00a0Homeroom<\/em>\u00a0to be localized in Thailand in partnership with Juvenile (JUVE9) and aligned with Turkey\u2019s Medyapim for\u00a0Mother\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Woman \u2013 My Life for My Children \u2013<\/em>\u00a0to be adapted for MBC in the Middle East. Adi Hasak and Adi TV Studios unveiled\u00a0Karantina<\/em>, an international production based on the ZDF format\u00a0Tempel<\/em>. All3Media International inked a deal with Falcon Pictures that will see the Indonesian production house produce local adaptations of three scripted formats, including\u00a0Cheat<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Known IP also continued to make waves in 2023, with an abundance of novel, comic book, film and podcast adaptations and a slew of franchise extensions. Of note, AMC Networks expanded\u00a0The Walking Dead<\/em>\u00a0and Anne Rice\u2019s Immortal Universe; STARZ greenlit an\u00a0Outlander<\/em>\u00a0prequel; Showtime revealed plans to expand\u00a0Dexter\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Billions<\/em>; Max ordered prequels to the hit\u00a0IT<\/em>\u00a0films and\u00a0Game of Thrones<\/em>\u00a0and an original Harry Potter scripted series; Skydance Television secured an exclusive first-look deal with author James Patterson to develop a slate of shows based on a selection of his top-selling book series; Citytv greenlit its adaptation of the\u00a0Law & Order franchise<\/em>\u00a0with the crime drama\u00a0Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent<\/em>; BBC and ZDF commissioned\u00a0The Famous Five<\/em>\u00a0from Moonage Pictures and Nicolas Winding Refn; Sony Television International and Eleven teamed to adapt Jeffrey Archer\u2019s\u00a0Kane and Abel<\/em>\u00a0trilogy as a TV series; and an as-yet-untitled\u00a0Bosch<\/em>\u00a0spin-off about Ren\u00e9e Ballard was greenlit by Prime Video, which also confirmed a series order for the drama\u00a0Cruel Intentions<\/em>, inspired by the iconic \u201990s film of the same name.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Producers also turned to the well of true tales as they sought out ideas that will capture audiences\u2019 attention in an ever-more-fragmented market. The BBC commissioned\u00a0Grenfell<\/em>, a drama about the deadly 2017 fire at Grenfell Tower in West London, from writer and director Peter Kosminsky, and\u00a0Kidnapped<\/em>, based on the true story of Chloe Ayling, a British model who was abducted in Italy in 2017. It also partnered with Netflix for\u00a0Lockerbie<\/em>. ITV commissioned a series based on Delia Balmer\u2019s autobiography\u00a0Living With a Serial Killer<\/em>\u00a0and one on the life of Ruth Ellis. Fremantle, Revolution Films, Passenger and Anonymous Content are co-producing\u00a0Fall of the God of Cars<\/em>\u00a0about Carlos Ghosn. BAFTA-winning screenwriter Jeremy Brock is adapting William Dalrymple\u2019s\u00a0The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company<\/em>. Banijay UK\u2019s Kudos partnered with Sarah Lancashire\u2019s Via Pictures and BAFTA-winning screenwriter Steven Knight to develop a series based on William Shakespeare\u2019s life. Apple TV+ landed the eight-episode French drama\u00a0Car\u00eame<\/em>, about the world\u2019s first celebrity chef, Antonin Car\u00eame. Jeff Pope is penning\u00a0Suspect: The Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes\u00a0<\/em>for Disney+. Netflix ordered a limited series based on the real-life story of the Corby poisonings. ZDF Studios aligned with Non Stop Studios and La Sagrada Familia to develop a drama series on the life of Formula 1 racing legend Juan Manuel Fangio and with Boogie Entertainment and Aristos Films to co-produce\u00a0The Kim Dotcom Story<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The year was also marked by the continued surge in global interest in Turkish and Korean series, a wealth of activity in the Spanish-language content space and a renewed emphasis on partnerships. For example, eight public-service broadcasters from northwestern Europe\u2014ZDF (Germany), NPO (the Netherlands), VRT (Belgium), SVT (Sweden), DR (Denmark), Yle (Finland), R\u00daV (Iceland) and NRK (Norway)\u2014came together to form New8, a collaboration that will see the pubcasters sharing drama series.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n