Studiocanal, the company behind “Paddington,” has acquired “Werewolves,” the buzzy strategic reality format that’s based on a cult board game, for multiple territories.
Sold by Banijay Entertainment, “Werewolves” is both a social experiment and a psychological thriller unfolding in real-time. It hails from Dreamspark, an unscripted formats studio.
“Werewolves” joins Studiocanal’s growing portfolio of next-gen formats and will be adapted across major international territories where the company has a footprint, including in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand, the U.K., Spain, Portugal, Italy, Nordics, The Netherlands, Israel, Mexico, Brazil and India.
The popular board game it’s adapted from is “Les Loups-garous de Thiercelieux,” which was created by Philippe des Pallières and Hervé Marly, and published by Asmodee.
The format takes place in a remote forest village, where a group of strangers known as the Villagers compete to win a prize, while hidden amongst them are the Werewolves, a secret set plotting to eliminate players one by one and steal the prize. “As tension builds and suspicions arise, the question remains: will the Villagers unmask the Werewolves in time?,” reads the synopsis.
The television adaptation, which became a breakout hit in France on the pay TV group Canal+ (Studiocanal’s sister company), was created and produced by Fary and Panayotis Pascot at Presque Prod, and Arnaud Chautard at JAAD Productions. A second season has already been produced and will soon premiere on Canal+.
Filmed at a purpose-built forest village in France, the production hub is now available for international versions through Banijay Entertainment’s global network of labels.
Following the French format success, a German adaptation for ARD Mediathek launched to top ratings. Studiocanal and Dreamspark handle the distribution of the format.
Helen Greatorex, Banijay Entertainment’s head of format acquisitions, said: “’Werewolves’ is one of the hottest formats on the market, and representing this is a major coup for us at Banijay Entertainment.”
“With its cult board game origins, an atmospheric forest-set production, dramatic strategic gameplay, and dark cinematic undertones, this format is built to travel. It perfectly complements our premium offering, and we’re excited to scale it internationally through our global network of labels,” she added.
Over at Studiocanal, the company’s CCO Anne Chérel, said: “‘Werewolves’ is a powerful and distinctive concept with strong international potential, and we truly believe in its ability to resonate with audiences around the world.”
Moe Bennani, Dreamspark CEO, said the format was “giving audiences everywhere the thrill of seeing the world’s most cunning players outwit each other in the legendary Werewolves universe.”
“Werewolves” is part of Banijay Entertainment’s Mipcom slate of premium third-party formats, alongside “Ninja Warrior;” “100” from “The Masked Singer” creator: the culinary format “Atypical Critics;” and the competitive knitting series “The Game of Wool” from Hello Halo for Channel 4.
variety.com
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