Ukrainian Political Comedy Optioned for the U.S.

KIEV: Fox Studios has optioned the U.S. remake rights for the political comedy Servant of the People produced by Ukrainian production company Kvartal 95 and sold by Eccho Rights.

The story is about a history teacher, Vasiliy, who was caught on camera raging over the miserable situation in his country. When a pupil posts the video on YouTube, it becomes a viral sensation and people start gathering money for a presidential campaign—which he wins. Servant of the People follows Vasiliy’s new life as president.

Vladimir Zelenskiy, co-founder and creative producer of Kvartal 95, commented: “We are very proud to be the producers of the first Ukrainian series one of [the] U.S. majors is acquiring the rights for. It is a breakthrough for the whole Ukrainian television industry. The story about an ordinary teacher who became president of the country and began to fight against corruption at all levels was resonant for millions of people in our country. But the original idea is universal since all over the world people want to see decent and honest politicians at the helm of the state.”

“Servant of the People is such a strong comedy concept and is so relevant with the contemporary mistrust in politicians,” said Nicola Söderlund, managing partner at Eccho Rights. “From the first time I heard about it, I immediately thought that this [is] going to be a hit. It’s simply a brilliant series.”