Spike TV Unveils Scripted Event Series

NEW YORK: Spike TV has revealed its new scripted development portfolio, which includes five high-profile projects that could potentially become special-event series.

Among the tentatively titled productions are Thinkfactory Media’s Hit Men, about the rise of the mafia in the music industry during the 1970s; Asylum Entertainment’s Whitey Bulger Project, which details the life of the notorious Boston mobster; and the Levinson/Fontana Company’s The Lamp, focused on secretive departments set up by the U.S. military in the ’70s.

There is also Pilgrim Studios’ Untitled Benghazi Project, which takes a close look at the 2012 terrorist attack on the American diplomatic mission in Libya; and Raw TV’s iHuman, a series of films on how technology is changing the human condition.

A number of well-known producers have signed up for these projects, including Tom Fontana (Homicide: Life on the Street), Chris Collins (Sons of Anarchy), Leslie Greif (Hatfields & McCoys) and Craig Piligian (Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy), among others.

"Our move into scripted special-event series is a major step in the evolution of the brand that now reaches a more balanced audience," said Sharon Levy, the executive VP of original series for Spike TV. "Each project features our development’s mission to thrill, inspire and entertain the viewer. We also see this as a stepping stone to developing original scripted dramatic series."