Doctor Foster Leads in Tracking the Giants Scripted Formats Report

Doctor Foster, Call My Agent! and High Intellectual Potential (HIP) have been identified as frontrunners in the scripted formats space, according to K7 Media’s latest Tracking the Giants: The Top 100 Travelling Scripted Formats report.

With exclusive new data covering January 2023 to June 2024, the report found that BBC Studios’ Doctor Foster leads the charge in scripted formats, having recently traveled with five new adaptations across Japan, Thailand, Germany, Slovakia and the Middle East.

French formats have also found immense success, with three new versions of Newen Connect’s Call My Agent! and the launch of TF1 Studio and France tv distribution’s High Intellectual Potential (HIP). A U.S. adaptation of the latter also debuted last month.

Other formats that have had strong performances are CJ ENM’s supernatural detective series Signal, Paramount Global Content Distribution’s parenting comedy Dear Daddies and All3Media International’s Liar. All three have premiered two new adaptations each during the report’s time period.

K7 Media’s report also highlighted a significant rise in Asian and Middle Eastern buyers, with Thailand in particular emerging as the leading buyer of scripted formats, driven by collaborations with CJ ENM. CJ ENM is also highlighted as the most successful current distributor of scripted formats.

“The market may have contracted, but the diversity of scripted formats crossing borders is remarkable,” said Richard O’Meara, associate director of drama and insight at K7 Media. “Audiences continue to gravitate toward character-driven stories, be they domestic thrillers like Doctor Foster or comedic explorations of the entertainment industry like Call My Agent! As the TV industry navigates ongoing challenges, the ability of these formats to transcend cultural boundaries is a testament to their universal appeal.”