TNT, a division of Turner, today announced a new series with Channel 4 titled FOREIGN BODIES, a comedic drama about a group of young adults venturing across China, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The two companies have ordered eight episodes of the series from Eleven and Entertainment One (eOne). Foreign Bodies is scheduled to launch on E4 in early 2017, followed later in the year by its U.S. debut on TNT.
Created by actor-writer Tom Basden (Plebs, Peep Show, Fresh Meat), Foreign Bodies is being scripted by Basden, James Wood (Rev, Ambassadors), Amy Roberts (The Village, Shameless), Loren McLaughlin (Coronation Street, Shameless), Charlie Covell (Banana, Burn Burn Burn), Tim Key (We Need Answers, Screenwipe) and Jonny Sweet (Together, Chickens). The series is being produced by Jamie Campbell and Joel Wilson's BAFTA-nominated production company Eleven and global studio eOne. Award-winning director Jonathan van Tulleken (Off Season, Movie 43, Misfits) has signed on to direct the first block of episodes. eOne controls worldwide rights to the series outside of th e U.K. The eight-part series was commissioned for Channel 4 by Piers Wenger and Roberto Troni. Carrie Stein, executive vice president of global production, will oversee the series for eOne.
Foreign Bodies is the story of a motley gang of travellers embarking on a three-month trip around Asia. British lads Sean (Ade Oyefeso) and Dylan (Anders Hayward) meet American girls May (Alice Lee) and Ashley (Brittney Wilson) in Beijing and opt to undergo the first leg of their travels together. But they soon find that their journey takes them much further than any of them expected.
The cast of Foreign Bodies, drawn from the U.S., Canada and the U.K., includes newcomer Anders Hayward (Sistema) starring as delusional romantic Dylan, who thinks every woman he meets is a potential life partner. BAFTA
BREAKTHROUGH Brit Ade Oyefeso (Unforgotten, E4's Youngers) is Sean, a friendly, easy-going guy hoping for a bit of escapism. They are joined by emerging Canadian star Brittney Wilson (Bates Motel), who plays blunt and headstrong Ashley, a young American student who is academically intelligent but emotionally unintelligent. Alongside her is Alice Lee (Jack, Jules, Esther & Me, Faking It) as May, a highly strung worrier who tends to overthink every situation. British actor, writer, performance poet and Edinburgh Comedy Award winner Tim Key (Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, I Give It A Year) joins them as Greg, a 38-year-old in denial about his marriage, his business and life in gener al. His upbeat energy hides a multitude of problems.
All the members of our gang have personal quests that have brought them halfway round the world. May wants to meet her extended family in China and reconnect with her roots, Ashley is hell-bent on cramming in a lifetime of exotic experiences before she starts her high-flying career back home, Dylan wants to track down and win back his ex-girlfriend, Sean wants to shed his innocence and forcibly grow up, and Greg, a divorcee who doesn't want to travel alone, hopes to roll back the years and relive the wild hedonism of his youth. In the end, they may or may not get what they hoped for, but they'll all come away with something better: the realization that no matter how far you go, no matter how hard you try, you can't take a holiday from yourself.
"Foreign Bodies is a terrific opportunity for
TNT to work with eOne, Eleven and E4 on a series that will appeal to young adults not only in the U.S. and the U.K. but also around the globe," said Sarah Aubrey, executive vice president of original programming for TNT. "It's also a great chance to bring Tom Basden's unique voice to our stateside viewers."
"We are thrilled to be bringing Foreign Bodies to audiences in the U.S. and the U.K.," said Pancho Mansfield, president of global scripted programming, Entertainment One Television. "TNT and Channel 4 are the perfect broadcast partners for this show. We're also delighted to expand our ongoing partnership with Eleven as we continue making first-rate shows with wide global appeal. We're excited to take this journey and look forward to delivering this standout series to the international market."
"We're very excited to be working with
TNT in bringing Foreign Bodies alive," said Joel Wilson and Jamie Campbell of Eleven. "Along with Channel 4,
TNT has shared and supported our vision for the show from the moment we pitched it. It's a great privilege to be working with such a dynamic pair of broadcasters on a show of such scale and ambition. Tom is a true visionary, and we can't wait to get shooting."
Piers Wenger, head of drama for Channel 4, said, "Tom Basden and the team of outstanding British writers have created a show that perfectly captures the hilarity of a gap year going wrong when five would-be travellers embark on an epic quest to find paradise... and themselves. I'm thrilled that Foreign Bodies will have a U.S. home on
TNT and look forward to working with Eleven to bring this fresh and exciting project to both U.K. and U.S. audiences."
About Eleven Jamie Campbell and Joel Wilson launched Eleven in 2006 to produce a range of high quality drama series, comedy and documentaries across the main UK networks including BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky. The company's credits include The Enfield Haunting starring Timothy Spall, Matthew Macfadyen and Juliet Stevenson (Sky Living/A&E), Cast Offs (Channel 4), Candid Cameron (BBC One), Rick and Peter (Channel 4), Playhouse Presents: Mr Understood (Sky Arts), My Breasts Could Kill Me (Sky 1) and major eight-part drama series Glue (E4). It is also developing a new TV drama series for US network
FOX called Nazareth which tells the story of the teenage Jesus. The company received one of Channel 4's Growth Fund investments in 2015.
About Channel 4 Channel 4 is a publicly owned, commercially funded, not-for-profit public service broadcaster and has a remit to be innovative, experimental and distinctive. Its public ownership and not-for-profit status ensure all profit generated by its commercial activity is directly reinvested back into the delivery of its public service remit. As a publisher-broadcaster, Channel 4 is also required to commission U.K. content from the independent production sector and currently works with over 300 creative companies across the U.K. every year. In addition to the main Channel 4 service, its portfolio includes: E4, More4, Film4, 4Music, 4seven, Channel4.com and digital service All 4.
About Entertainment One Entertainment One Ltd. (LSE:ETO) is a leading international entertainment company that specializes in the acquisition, production and distribution of film and television content. The Company's comprehensive network extends around the globe including Canada, the U.S., the U.K., Ireland, Spain, the Benelux, France, Germany, Scandinavia, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Through established Film and Television Divisions, the company provides extensive expertise in film distribution, television and music production, family programming, merchandising and licensing, and digital content. Its current rights library is exploited across all media formats and includes more than 40,000 film and television titles, 4,500 hours of television programming and 45,000 music tracks.
About
TNT TNT, a division of Turner, is one of cable's top-rated networks. Seen across multiple platforms in 94 million households,
TNT is home to such original drama series as The Last Ship, The Librarians, Major Crimes, Murder in the First, Rizzoli & Isles and the upcoming
ANIMAL Kingdom, Good Behavior and The Alienist, along with a new horror block featuring Tales from the Crypt.
TNT is also the c able home to popular dramas like Castle, Bones, Supernatural and Grimm; primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards(R), the Live Nation Music Awards and the iHeartRadio Music Awards; and championship sports coverage, including the NBA and the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship. Turner, a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, sports, animation and young adult multi-platform content for consumers around the world. Turner brands and businesses include CNN/U.S., HLN,
CNN International and CNN.com, TBS, TNT, TCM, truTV, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Adult Swim, Turner Sports, Bleacher Report, iStream Planet and ELEAGUE.
Comments
To post a comment, you must
register and
login.
