Channel 4 and Helion recruit Dexter creator for French drama remake

James Manos Jr, the creator of Showtime’s hit drama series Dexter, has been hired to write and executive produce an English-language adaptation of French scripted series Pigalle, La Nuit.

The deal has been put together by 4Rights, the rights exploitation arm of UK broadcaster Channel 4, and Helion Pictures, the Paris-based production company run by Stephen Bawol.

Helion Pictures optioned the rights to Pigalle from French production company Lincoln TV, through a development deal with 4Rights. Anne Thomopoulos, former head of drama and mini-series at HBO, is also attached to the series as exec producer.

Manos, who was also a writer on The Sopranos, will write the pilot for the show. The French version was set in the Paris underworld and the new version, which will be pitched to US cable nets and international broadcasters, will be set in Moscow. It tells the story of a businessman tracing a long lost sister amid the Russian sex trade.

He said: “I’m very excited to be working on this new version of Pigalle. The original series was gripping and suspenseful. We’re going to build on the success of that show to create a series that uses the global phenomenon of organised crime as a backdrop for a story of one man’s corruption and his struggle for redemption.”

The series marks 4Rights first investment in a US drama series. Dominic Schreiber, rights development manager at 4Rights, said: “There’s huge interest in scripted formats in the US right now, and having a writer like Jim on board takes this project to a whole new level.”