Sky buys NBC’s Aquarius for Europe

Sky has bought NBC drama series Aquarius for its European services.

The pan-Sky deal means the cop series, set in the 1960s and revolving around the Charles Manson killings, will be on Sky in the UK and Ireland, Germany, Austria and Italy.

The 13x60mins series is produced and distributed by ITV Studios, which struck the Sky deal. The David Duchovny series will launch in the UK first, on the Sky Atlantic channel, on August 11.

The different Sky operations have started working together on original drama series, but this is the first major drama acquisition across the whole group and reaching its cumulative 21 million customers.

Gary Davey, Sky’s managing director of content, said: “I’m thrilled Sky has secured Aquarius for our customers across Europe. Exclusively on Sky Atlantic, Aquarius further strengthens Sky’s position as the home of quality drama across Europe.”

Dan Gopal, executive VP, EMEA Distribution, for ITV Studios Global Entertainment added: “We are delighted that it will launch on Sky Atlantic in the UK during August, while the series continues its run in the US, and we look forward to its forthcoming debut in Sky’s other European territories later this year.

“It’s great that Sky’s audience will be able to enjoy the show across the full offering of Sky’s linear and on-demand services in each market.”