Scripted round-up: US remake for Belgium’s ‘Team Chocolate’; Showtime adapts Swedish book for TV; Netflix reveals ‘All The Light We Cannot See’

Team Chocolate

LA-based STXtelevision has teamed with Newen’s Reel One Entertainment to develop and produce an English-language adaptation of Belgian drama Team Chocolate.

The two companies have secured format rights from French independent distributor Wild Bunch TV and are planning a show for US audiences based on the Belgian series.

The original show follows a young man with Down’s syndrome who starts his first job in a family-run chocolate factory, working with a diverse team of employees with a range of disabilities. After falling in love with one of his colleagues, the young man sets off with his new friends on a road trip to find her

The Belgian series was produced by local producer De Mensen in collaboration with Theater Stap, a theater company that works with disabled actors, many of whom starred in the show.

In keeping with that tradition, STXtelevision and Reel One said it would be “committed to casting the show with the same character specific attention, authenticity and care that was a hallmark of the original series.”

Jada Miranda, president of creative development & production at STXtelevision, said: “We were struck by Team Chocolate’s honest and unbarred portrayal of lives within a community we don’t often see authentically adapted for screen, and we’re excited to be bringing the story to English-speaking audiences.”

Tom Berry, CEO of Reel One, added: “We needed a partner that shared our passion for this project and STX’s enthusiasm, commitment and creative chops makes them the ideal co-producer for Team Chocolate.”

STXtelevision is a division of Eros STX Global Corporation and has been behind shows such as Valley Of The Boom for National Geographic, Rise Of Empires: Ottoman for Netflix and the upcoming George Lopez starrer Once Upon A Time In Aztlán for Amazon.

Reel One is majority owned by Newen, a subsidiary of TF1 Group, with A+E Networks holding a 35% stake.

Netflix & Peaky Blinders’ Steven Knight reveal All The Light We Cannot See

Netflix has partnered with Peaky Blinders’ scribe Steven Knight on an adaptation of 2014 novel All The Light We Cannot See.

The four-parter is being produced by Shawn Levy’s US prodco 21 Laps Entertainment, with Levy set to direct all episodes.

Knight will write the show, which is based on Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize-winning bestseller and tells the story of Marie-Laure, a teenager who is blind, and Werner, a German soldier, whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of the Second World War.

Showtime adapts Swedish novel

Showtime has given a series order to Let The Right One In, a new drama based on inspired by the original hit Swedish novel and film.

Andrew Hinderaker (Penny Dreadful), who wrote the pilot, will serve as showrunner and executive produce along with Seith Mann (Homeland), who directed the pilot and will also direct additional episodes.

The 10-parter show is being produced by ITV Studios-backed Tomorrow Studios and will go into production in New York City in early 2022. Demián Bichir (A Better Life) and Anika Noni Rose (Dreamgirls) are among cast.

The story centers on a man and his daughter whose lives were changed forever 10 years earlier when she was turned into a vampire. The show explores how she lives a closed-in life, able to go out only at night, while her father does his best to provide her with the human blood she needs to stay alive.

Starz drama Outlander lands on Starzplay in UK

Starzplay has obtained exclusive rights to Outlander for its UK service, marking the first time the series will stream on its home platform outside the US.

The sixth season of Outlander, which debuted on Starz in 2014, will launch exclusively on sibling streamer Starzplay in the UK day and date with the US. All previous seasons will be available before new episodes roll out.

The show is produced by Tall Ship Productions, Left Bank Pictures and Story Mining & Supply Company, in association with Sony Pictures Television.