Zodiak Rights, the distribution arm of Zodiak Media, has announced a raft of deals in Scandinavia for The Returned, the 8 x 60’ 2013 International EMMY® winner hit drama series, produced by Haut et Court TV for CANAL+ Original Creation.
Public channels YLE in Finland and NRK in Norway have acquired The Returned, the series described as “one of the most intriguing, utterly original offerings of the year” by The Hollywood Reporter. In Iceland, the series was acquired by the national broadcaster RUV.
These deals come in addition to those previously inked in Sweden, where SVT was among the very first broadcasters to acquire the series, even before its groundbreaking success in France on CANAL+, in the U.K. on Channel 4, and in the U.S. on SundanceTV.
The Returned has been a huge hit in France where it is known as Les Revenants. In the U.K., the series described as “Best drama of the year” by The Sunday Times and the Observer became the highest rated subtitled drama in the U.K. since 2006, attracting an average audience of 1.8 million viewers in its prime time slot on Channel 4.
The Returned has already sold in over 70 territories including Latin America (HBO Latam), the U.K. (Channel 4 & Universal Pictures), the U.S.A. (Music Box / SundanceTV), Germany (STUDIOCANAL), Canada (Bell Media & Radio Canada), Thailand (TrueVision), Hong Kong (Now TV), Taiwan (PTS), South Korea (AXN), Australia & New Zealand (SBS and Rialto Channel), Sweden (SVT), Dutch speaking Belgium (VRT and Telenet), Hungary (Viasat Broadcasting), Israel (Hot Vision), and Turkey (Sinema TV). These numerous sales earned Zodiak Rights the 2013 TVFI Export Prize.
Zodiak Rights holds worldwide distribution rights to the series.