Grandpas Over Flowers Being Adapted in Italy

LOS ANGELES: The Korean reality format Grandpas Over Flowers is getting an Italian treatment, set to air on RAI 2 in 2017.

The deal was brokered by Small World in collaboration with Endemol Shine Italy. The original Grandpas Over Flowers was created by CJ E&M and secured record-breaking ratings on tvN in South Korea for three seasons. The format was adapted for the U.S. market as Better Late Than Never, which has been commissioned for a second season by NBC.

Tim Crescenti, the president at Small World IFT, said, “I’m very excited to see the success of Grandpas Over Flowers build with this first commission in Europe. We have created a new genre of unscripted comedy combining humor, entertainment and adventure, as viewers get to follow these living legends on a journey of a lifetime that sees them learning as much about themselves as they do about new cultures. Grandpas Over Flowers is an inspiring, funny and an across-the-board family ratings smash. We can’t wait to take the Italian viewers on this fandamntastic viaggio!”

Orsetta Violante Balsamo, the head of formats acquisitions and international at Endemol Shine Italy, added, “We’re very excited to be embarking on this new adventure with the help and support of our friends from Small World. We’ve been tracking Better Late Than Never since it was launched as Grandpas Over Flowers in Korea and I trust the time is ripe for it to blossom in Italy.”