Scandal


Shonda Rhimes ditches ABC for Netflix

Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes is bringing her Shondaland production company to Netflix under a multi-year deal to produce new series and other projects. Rhimes’(pictured) range of dramas including Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder and Grey’s Anatomy already stream on Netflix in various regions. The shows also air in the US on ABC […]

Paul Lee leaving ABC, Dungey steps up

Paul Lee is leaving his role running ABC, with Channing Dungey replacing him at the US broadcast net. Lee’s exit comes after Ben Sherwood (below right) replaced Anne Sweeney at the top of the Disney/ABC Television group. Dungey (left) joined ABC in 2004, having also worked at Warner Bros. and Fox. As EVP, drama development, […]

Caroline Beaton: Why niche is the new normal

In an increasingly fragmented TV landscape, should broadcasters and producers focus more on niche formats than on trying to recreate the entertainment and reality juggernauts of the noughties, says Viacom International Media Networks senior VP, international programme sales Caroline Beaton. We’re told we are living through a ‘golden age’ of television, with intensifying competition for […]

ABC revives Muppets, okays Rhimes drama

ABC kicked off the 2015-16 Upfronts week by ordering six dramas and three comedies, including a Muppets revival. The network also renewed 22 primetime series, and cancelled four others. The Muppets show is being billed as an aged-up documentary-style series in which the puppet characters’ lives are explored in detail. The comedy comes from Bill […]

Downton, Mr Selfridge enter Mongolia

ITV’s British period dramas Downton Abbey and Mr Selfridge are headed into Mongolia following deals secured by a local broadcaster. Mongol TV has bought Downton (pictured) from NBCUniversal International Television Distribution and Mr Selfridge from ITV Studios Global Entertainment. The channel, which has been a consistent buyer of Western scripted content after overhauling its programming […]

Walking Dead feasts on social media

The Walking Dead generated more Tweets and had a larger audience on Twitter than any other show in the US in 2014, according to Nielsen. The research firm said that an average of 4.9 million people saw at least one Tweet about each new episode of the programme, and that people sent an average of […]

Toggle scores Disney SVOD deal

Singaporean OTT service Toggle has scored a multiyear SVOD deal with The Walt Disney Company. Under terms of the pact, selected series from Disney-owned ABC Studios such as Revenge, Scandal and Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will run on the MediaCorp-owned Toggle Prime branded subscription service. Furthermore, Disney, Pixar and Marvel movies such as Iron Man […]

Scandal goes into syndication with Viacom’s BET

Hit ABC political thriller series Scandal has gone into syndication, with Viacom channel BET launching the first two seasons this summer. BET’s deal gives it access to each episode of the show no earlier than eight days after its original network broadcast. Following the launch of the first pair of seasons, the third will debut […]

ABC takes up Quest

US broadcast network ABC has called on the producers of The Amazing Race and feature film The Lord of the Rings to help create a fantasy-themed reality adventure series. The Quest will follow 12 contestants that enter the world of ‘Everealm’ – a fantasy-themed set filled with “epic” challenges. Amazing Race creators Bertram van Munster […]