RHI becomes Sonar and preps Hellraiser TV series

RHI has rebranded as Sonar Entertainment and unveiled a new slate that includes a TV series based on the Hellraiser horror movie franchise.

The company will continue to produce and distribute TV movies and miniseries and will also move into the TV series market. Stuart Till has moved from interim co-CEO to full-time CEO of the new-look company.

The rebrand follows the departure of the Robert Halmi and his son from the company.

“Historically we have made and sold TV movies and miniseries and that won’t change,” Till told TBI. “The big sea-change is moving into the series market.”

Hellraiser will be a 13x1hrs series. “It will be based on the feature film franchise,” Till said. “There is a strong appetite for horror at the moment off the back off shows like The Walking Dead. The franchise has a strong following and we need to make it aggressive enough for that fanbase, but not so aggressive that we scare away broadcasters.”

Sonar is partnering with Canada’s Muse Entertainment on another series, 8x1hr offering King Tut, about the Egyptian king. It will also distribute Muse’s series Bomb Girls.

Another potential series is MPH from Die Hard screenwriter Steven E. De Souza. He is writing the show, an action series about an international law enforcement unit, which Sonar says will be a back-door pilot for a series. The Hunters is another back-door pilot and the two-hour show, based on Joshua Williamson’s graphic novel Mirror Mirror will be made with Kickstart Productions.