TVEUROPE
Hat Trick International has secured worldwide rights for the off-beat comedy drama Magnus, from the makers of the hit Lilyhammer.
Produced by Viafilm, Magnus is created by the award-winning comedy performer Vidar Magnussen (Side by Side). Commissioned for NRK, two versions of the 6×30-minute series were shot both in Norwegian and in English. Magnus is currently in competition at Canneseries. A sci-fi crime and comedy thriller set in Norway, the series features Magnus (played by Magnussen), an idiotic genius former detective, as he tries to solve a murder rooted in Norse mythology.
Anders Tangen, CEO of Viafilm, said, “To call Magnus purely a comedy would do it an injustice, this is more like a ‘strangedy.’ We have shied away from parody and tried to create real drama, built around a growing line up of absurd and unexpected characters. We are extremely pleased to have placed the international rights to our show in the safe hands of Hat Trick International with its exceptional comedy distribution credentials.”
Sarah Tong, director of sales at Hat Trick International, commented, “Although we don’t normally pick up third-party comedy as we have our own award-winning shows from the Hat Trick stable, we just couldn’t resist Magnus! We are confident that this quirky but hilarious series will travel, and we can’t wait to share the show with our clients at MIPTV.”
Hana Zidek, acquisitions executive at Hat Trick International, added, “We started tracking this inspired and off-the-wall comedy at Content London back in November. We are very excited by the huge potential this series offers.”
