Reelz to Present Epic Mini-Series WORLD WITHOUT END

ReelzChannel - TV About Movies(R) today announced the eight-hour mini-series WORLD WITHOUT END will make its U.S. premiere on REELZ in fall 2012. Produced by Tandem Communications ("The Pillars Of The Earth", The Company) and Take 5 Productions (The Tudors, The Borgias) in co-production with Galafilm, in association with Ridley Scott and Tony Scott's Scott Free Films (The Good Wife), "World Without End" is an adaptation of Ken Follett's international best-selling novel set amidst natural disaster, plague and war in 14th century England two hundred years after the construction of the great cathedral in "The Pillars of the Earth". "World Without End" picks up with a new cast of characters, including Caris, a feisty young woman played by Charlotte Riley (The Duchess, Wuthering Heights), who inspires her medieval town of Kingsbridge to confront the most powerful forces of her time, namely the Church and the Crown, as they fight to save their town from ruin and, ultimately, usher in a new era of freedom, innovation and enlightenment.

As the network showcased its TV About Movies approach with "The Kennedys", REELZ' all-absorbing presentation of "World Without End" will take viewers behind the scenes of the spectacular mini-series, into the careers of the cast and creators and deep into the vast world of movies that derive from best-selling books, depict the Middle Ages and explore the timeless intrigue of politics and religion.

"'World Without End' is a monumental mini-series, told in a way that's as big as the author himself. With 'The Kennedys' we conditioned our audience to know that our network is home to the biggest mini-series and 'World Without End' is exactly that," said Stan E. Hubbard, CEO of ReelzChannel. "We're proud to take our viewers inside Ken Follett's intriguing and magnificent world through a story that is cinematic in scope with an award-winning cast, crew and creators."

"Given their impressive marketing and promotion campaign for 'The Kennedys', REELZ emerged as an exciting and compelling partner to present 'World Without End' to the U.S. audience. This project is more than a labor of passion; it was conceived and produced as an eight-hour feature film with a team of talent that possesses the craftsmanship to bring that goal home. We look forward now to partnering with Stan Hubbard and REELZ to go for the gold with 'World Without End'," said Rola Bauer, CEO and Partner of Tandem Communications (a StudioCanal company).

"Scott Free and Tandem have always strived in our collaborations to create cinema for television. 'World Without End' is, in scope and breadth, a particular achievement, and we're thrilled to have a partner in REELZ who recognizes that this is anything but standard TV fare," said Ridley Scott of Scott Free.

"World Without End" stars Emmy(R) and Golden Globe(R)-winner Cynthia Nixon (Sex and the City, The Big C) as the beautiful and deadly schemer "Petranilla", two-time Oscar-nominee, Golden Globe and BAFTA-winner Miranda Richardson (Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, The Young Victoria) as the strong and determined "Mother Cecilia", Olivier and Tony-nominee Ben Chaplin (The Thin Red Line, Me and Orson Welles) as the mysterious "Sir Thomas Langley", Oscar-nominee and Golden Globe-winner Peter Firth (MI5, The Hunt for Red October) as the ruthless Earl "Roland", BAFTA-nominee Charlotte Riley (The Duchess, Wuthering Heights) as the wise and compassionate "Caris", Rupert Evans (Hellboy, Agora) as the duplicitous "Godwyn", Nora von Waldstaetten (Carlos, The Countess) as "Gwenda", the street-wise peasant girl, Oliver Jackson-Cohen (What's Your Number, The Raven) as the rough and dangerous "Ralph", accomplished stage thespian Tom Weston-Jones (the new BBC series, Coppers, MI-5) as the creative and ambitious "Merthin", Gemini Award-winner and Genie Award-nominee Megan Follows (Heartland, Anne of Green Gables) as "Maud", a lady fallen from grace, and Genie-nominee Sarah Gadon (in the up-coming Cosmopolis with Robert Pattinson, A Dangerous Method) as the attractive and intelligent "Philippa".

Filmed on location in Hungary, Austria and Slovakia with HoWard Ellis' Mid Atlantic Films ("The Pillars of the Earth"), the eight-hour epic thriller is directed by Michael Caton-Jones (Rob Roy, This Boy's Life, Shooting Dogs - US title: Beyond the Gates). "World Without End" Executive Producers include Ridley Scott (Prometheus), Tony Scott (Unstoppable), Rola Bauer ("The Pillars of the Earth"), David W. Zucker (The Good Wife), Tim Halkin (Kate Mosse's Labyrinth), Jonas Bauer (The Lost Future), John Weber (The Borgias), with co-producer Arnie Gelbart (The Blue Butterfly).

The global bestseller World Without End by Ken Follett has been published in 30 markets and was on the New York Times bestseller list for 26 weeks after the hardcover publication, then again on the list for its paperback edition. It hit the #1 position on the following bestseller lists: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, Publishers Weekly, Sony e-book, France's Livres Hebdo, The Globe and Mail in the UK and Germany's Der Spiegel.

About Tandem Communications

Tandem Communications is located in Munich, Germany and was started in 1999 by Rola Bauer and Tim Halkin. In 2007 Jonas Bauer became a partner in the company. From the beginning, their strategy was to build a vertically integrated media company whose core business is primetime production and worldwide distribution.

2012 marks a new chapter in TANDEM's history with STUDIOCANAL taking a majority stake in the company, effectively making TANDEM the television production and distribution arm of the European studio.

TANDEM, the European mini-studio in international TV productions develops, produces, markets and distributes high-quality, primetime Event programming of own and third party productions for the worldwide market: From the ground-breaking Emmy and Gemini Award-winning and Golden Globe nominated series, The Pillars of the Earth with its record-breaking ratings and excellent critical acclaim, to the Emmy Award winner Frank Herbert's Dune to the Golden Globe nominated The Company, to the Emmy nominaTed Dragons' World, to name a few.

Further high-profile titles that have garnered excellent ratings and praise from the critics include Impact, Ring of the Nibelungs, the Nora Roberts franchise, Lost City Raiders, the Patricia Cornwell franchise, The Lost Future and Treasure Guards. TANDEM has been privileged to have partnered with acclaimed producers on several of these projects.

In December 2011, production wrapped on the eight-hour Event series World Without End, based on Ken Follett's bestseller, as well as Labyrinth, a four-hour Event miniseries based on the bestselling novel by Kate Mosse.

About Scott Free

Scott Free Productions was formed in 1995 and is the film and television production vehicle of acclaimed film directors, brothers Ridley Scott and Tony Scott. Scott Free Television enjoyed a banner 2011 with the third season of the Emmy, Golden Globe-nominated, Peabody-acclaimed drama, THE GOOD WIFE. An eight-hour adaptation of Ken Follett's recent international best-seller, WORLD WITHOUT END, featuring Cynthia Nixon, is now in post-production, while a four-hour adaptation of Robin Cook's medical thriller, COMA, with Geena Davis, James Woods, Richard Dreyfuss and Ellen Burstyn headlining, is targeted for fall broadcast on A&E.

Additionally, Scott Free has produced six impressive seasons of the CBS crime series, NUMB3RS as well as the 8-hour event drama, "THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH", a Golden Globe nominee and international smash. PILLARS is one of the latest in a steady stream of Award-winning longform programs including HBO's INTO THE STORM, sequel to the Emmy-winning telefilm, THE GATHERING STORM, A&E's Emmy-nominated mini-series, Michael Crichton's THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN and TNT's epic six-hour spy thriller, THE COMPANY, a Golden Globe nominee, starring Michael Keaton and Alfred Molina, based on the book by Robert Littell.

In the non-fiction arena, KILLING LINCOLN, a two-hour documentary event for National Geographic Channel was recently announced, while the documentary special, GETTYSBURG, produced for the History Channel, took home four Emmys last year.

Scott Free most recently produced Ridley Scott's highly anticipated return to science fiction, PROMETHEUS. Other films include The Grey, Unstoppable, and the indie films Cyrus and Welcome to the Rileys. With offices in Los Angeles and London, Scott Free works closely with RSA, one of the world largest and most successful commercial production houses in the world.

About Take 5 Productions

Toronto-based Take 5 Productions was founded in 2009 to finance and produce high-quality international television, and quickly established itself as an industry leader. Led by CEO John Weber, Take 5 is the follow up venture to Dufferin Gate Productions which was successfully sold in 2007. Over the past fifteen years, Weber and his team have produced, serviced or financed over 100 film and television projects within the first twelve months of operation for Take 5, the company completed and delivered the final season of the award winning series The Tudors.

Building on the success of The Tudors, Take 5 successfully co-produced and delivered the first season of The Borgias for Showtime Networks and CTV, followed by the delivery of the first season of Camelot for Starz Entertainment, G-K Films and CBC in Canada. Take 5 is an industry leader in deficit financing with established relationships with major broadcasters and distributors within Canada and throughout the international community. With a proven track record in Canada and abroad, Take 5 continues to develop opportunities to finance, produce and distribute high-end content on all emerging platforms.

About Galafilm

For 20 years, Galafilm has been at the forefront of independent film and television production in Canada. Founded and helmed by Arnie Gelbart, the company is synonymous with high-quality production values and built its reputation by producing cutting edge documentaries along with award-winning children's programming, features and successful television dramas, including Tripping The Wire starring Clark Johnson, Hunt for Justice: The Louise Arbour Story featuring Wendy Crewson, John Corbett, and William Hurt, Race to Mars, starring Michael Riley, Lothaire Bluteau, and Pascal Bussiéres, and Mordecai Richler's classic novel St. Urbain's Horseman. Galafilm's latest success is the multi-generational comedy 18 to Life. Galafilm is a board member of the CMPA (Canadian Media Producers Association) as well as the APFTQ (Association des producteurs de film et de television du Québec).

About ReelzChannel

ReelzChannel - TV About Movies(R) is the only cable and satellite network devoted to delivering entertaining and informative programming that is all about movies, including the celebrities, fashion, music and stories behind the stories. The network is also home to ambitious television events, mini-series and series featuring big stories and big stars as seen with the Emmy(R)-winning mini-series "The Kennedys". With shows featuring movie and entertainment experts, including Leonard Maltin, Richard Roeper and Sam Rubin, viewers get trusted insight into movies wherever they're playing, whether in theaters or at home.

ReelzChannel reaches more than 63 million homes on DIRECTV channel 238, Dish Network channel 299, Verizon FiOS TV channel 233, AT&T U-verse channels 799/1799HD and cable systems nationwide. Find ReelzChannel in your area by entering your zip code at www.reelz.com/watch. Owned by Hubbard Media Group, ReelzChannel is headquartered in Albuquerque, NM with national ad sales based out of New York City with offices in Boston, Chicago and Los Angeles and an entertainment bureau in Los Angeles.

 

 

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