Fremantle Takes Global Production, Distribution on ‘Special Delivery’

Global colossus Fremantle has added to its vast entertainment portfolio, securing worldwide production, development and distribution rights outside Japan to “Special Delivery,” a whacky fun comedy game show co-developed by Amsterdam’s Blue Circle, a Fremantle company, and Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), the top Japanese producer and broadcaster.

Fremantle will bring “Special Delivery” to market at this week’s London TV Screenings, the biggest European TV sales platform of the first six months of the year, where the RTL-owned Super Indie hold a Feb. 27 upfront.

Billed by Fremantle as an “irresistibly fun comedy competition,” “Special Delivery” plays to Japan’s strength as an format export power, Variety noted Monday: “high-concept entertainment formats built around simple game mechanics.” 

Here, comedians are sent on hilarious missions to try to deliver anything, anywhere, anyhow. The parcels they collect at Delivery HQ are “absurd,” the destinations “impossible” and the conditions “ridiculous.” The net result is “unpredictable deliveries that create maximum mischief, laugh-out-moments and instantly visual, viral-ready comedy,” Fremantle noted Tuesday, announcing its deal on “Special Delivery.”

Commissioned for TBS in Japan, “Special Delivery” bowed this January in Japan, where its debut episode ranked No. 1 in its time slot, scoring a 28% audience share. 

Played by celebrities in Japan, the format can be adapted to different casting approaches worldwide, Fremantle noted.

“As a broadcaster known for bold, inventive comedy, TBS has been an exceptional creative partner, and together we’ve shaped a format that harnesses the originality of Japanese entertainment into something with clear global potential,” said Vasha Wallace, Fremantle EVP global acquisitions and development, global entertainment. “There is a strong appetite worldwide for big, visual, laugh-out-loud comedy, and ‘Special Delivery’ has all the ingredients to travel and connect with audiences beyond Japan,” she added. 

“We’re delighted to partner with Fremantle on ‘Special Delivery,’ and proud of what the teams have created together in Japan. The format’s bold physical comedy and playful competition feel universally entertaining, and we’re excited to see the format reach audiences internationally,” observed Kentaro Fukuda, head of global IP studio at TBS.

Blue Circle is a 100% Fremantle subsidiary which is one of the biggest and most prolific Netherlands specialists in entertainment, daily show, sports and lifestyle programming, behind Dutch reversions of “Dancing With the Stars,” “Idols” and “X-Factor.”

TBS ranks as one of Japan’s biggest media conglomerates, with a bevy of international format breakouts, such as game show “Takeshi’s Castle,” sports entertainment reality format “Ninja Warrior,” sold to 160 territories, and variety show “Fun TV with Kato-chan and Ken-chan,” which spawned “America’s Funniest Home Videos.”