Topic & SBS strike deals for ‘Agatha Christie’s Hjerson’

Agatha Christie’s Hjerson

Global broadcasters and platforms including US streamer Topic and Australia’s SBS have picked up Agatha Christie’s Hjerson, following deals with distributor ZDF Studios.

Beyond North America and Australia, ZDF Studios has also licensed the series to VOD platforms Google Play, iTunes, Amazon, Deutsche Telekom and Huawei for German speaking territories as well as Germany’s public broadcaster, ZDF.

Other buyers include Viasat World, which covers Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Croatia and the whole of Southeast Europe, Keshet (Israel), NHK (Japan), VR Films (India), LRT (Lithuania) and Walter Presents, Walter Iuzzolino’s Global Series Network for UK and Ireland.

Available as an 8 x 44-minute or 4 x 88-minute series, Agatha Christie’s Hjerson is a mystery drama with a contemporary meta twist, originally commissioned by TVC/C More.

The series was produced by Patrik Andersson and Ulf Synnerholm at BR•F, in co-production with ZDF, Nadcon and the Government of Åland, and in close collaboration with ZDF Studios and Agatha Christie Ltd. The series was produced with support from Nordisk Film & TV fund. It was created and developed by Patrik Gyllström at BR•F and was written by Patrik Gyllström, Björn Paqualin, Jakob Beckman, Martin Luuk and Aron Levander.

Johan Rheborg stars in the leading role as detective Sven Hjerson, while his sidekick Klara Sandberg is played by Hanna Alström.

Former investigator Sven Hjerson has solved some of the toughest cases in Swedish crime history. Now retired from the limelight, living on the fringes of society, his life mainly consists of daily routines, a vegan diet, vinyl record collecting and an unhealthy appetite for gossip.

Klara Sandberg is a reality TV producer living with her partner Niklas and their daughter Olivia. Her career has stagnated and she is looking for something new – is this really all that life has to offer? When she manages to successfully pitch the idea for a new TV show starring Hjerson, it could just be the solution to all of her problems. There’s just one snag – she’s never actually met Sven Hjerson…

Yi Qiao, director of drama, ZDF Studios said: “I’m delighted that this excellent drama, which sees a spin off character from the Christie universe come to life for the first time, has found its way to North America and Australia.

“With Agatha Christie being world famous as one of the best-selling authors of all time, there is a never-ending demand for her work to brighten the small screen.”