UnREAL Set for Indian Adaptation

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India’s Applause Entertainment has picked up the scripted-format rights to A+E Networks’ hit drama UnREAL, with plans to produce one ten-episode season and the option to make a second.

The dramedy follows the making of a television reality dating show. It ran for three seasons on Lifetime before moving to Hulu for its fourth season. The agreement marks the first international deal for the series and the first scripted format from A+E Networks to be acquired in India.

Edward Sabin, executive managing director for international at A+E Networks, noted, “Since debuting in the U.S. in 2015, UnREAL has changed the cultural conversation surrounding women in the entertainment workplace with much-lauded portrayals of powerful—and very real—women, both on camera and behind the scenes. We fully anticipate this noisy format will have a similar impact throughout the international marketplace.”

Sameer Nair, CEO of Applause Entertainment, added, “Indian audiences have always loved reality shows, and UnREAL, a brilliant show on the behind-the-scenes conniving of a dating show, is bound to be a unique reality check in the ever-exploding Indian digital content space.”