Vin Diesel along with his One Race Productions banner have inked a multiyear overall deal with Universal Television to produce TV series for the studio. His first project under the deal will be a television adaptation of Diesel’s sci-fi franchise Riddick. Former Fox Broadcasting executive Shana C. Waterman is also coming aboard One Race as head of television. On the film side, Diesel has not only starred in the Fast and Furious franchise but has also produced four of the films. He’s also produced features A Man Apart, The Chronicles of Riddick and Hitman, as well as documentaries A War Hero and Life Is a Dream.
The Weinstein Company is partnering with American Media to launch a new TV production unit to center on the development, creation, production and distribution of original television, film and digital initiatives based on American Media’s portfolio. American Media’s extensive portfolio includes titles such as the National Enquirer, Men’s Fitness, OK!, Star, National Examiner and Jupiter Entertainment. The initial focus will be on unscripted programming. To that end, Jupiter already produces non-scripted shows including Animal Planet’s Wild West Alaska, Oxygen’s Snapped while TWC produces The Project Runway series and its spin-offs. Patrick Reardon, EVP of TWC’s TV department, Dylan Howard, AMI’s VP and COO, and Stephen Land, Chief Executive of Jupiter Entertainment will head the new venture.
The FCC has approved Altice NV’s $9.1 billion purchase of controlling interest (70%) in Suddenlink Communications. Under the deal Altice now holds the reins to a cable operator with 1.5 million customers across 17 states. Suddenlink’s outgoing CEO, Jerry Kent, has made an investment in Altice USA and will become a chairman of a new Advisory Council.
German producers Philipp Kreuzer and Jörg Schulze are launching Maze Pictures, a film and TV company to develop and finance high-end content for local and international markets. Among the first projects is the adaptation of crime drama The Crimson Rivers as an international hour-long series in partnership with Luc Besson’s EuropaCorp Television. Maze Pictures is also developing Rupert Everett’s directorial debut The Happy Prince with BBC Films and Lionsgate UK among others as well as an international series Heirs Of The Night with NDR/KIKA, ZDF Enterprises and Hamster Film.
Sony Pictures Television and DISH Network signed long-term carriage agreements including the first-time nationwide distribution of classic TV channel getTV, the addition of Spanish-language Cine Sony Television on DishLATINO, and continued distribution of the Sony Movie Channel.
The CW Network has signed new long-term affiliation agreements with Nexstar Broadcasting Group for all nine of Nexstar’s owned or operated stations that are currently CW affiliates. The deal follows CW’s similar renewal with Gray Television as the network seeks to secure markets in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago controlled by its affiliate group, Tribune. Negotiations between Tribune and The CW parents CBS and Warner Bros., are expected to come to a head in early 2016.
Channel 4 has picked up the broadcast rights to Formula One in the UK after the BBC, cancelled its six year deal three years early. Channel 4’s new deal will span three years, cover the broadcast of ten races a season from 2016 on, and has a value of $90 million. As Channel 4 is state owned but does carry advertising, it will not air ads during the live races. BBC’s deal cancellation was made due to pressure on the channel to find savings in excess of $1 billion this year and it followed its job cuts of more than 1,000 workers in the summer.