Endemol adapting French crime drama in US

Endemol Studios is to remake French crime series Les Hommes de l’Ombre in the US after striking its first third-party scripted format acquisition deal.

This comes a year after the company launched the scripted division, which is based in Los Angeles and run by Philippe Maigret.

Endemol Studios is remaking the political-themed thriller under the working title Kingmakers and is in talks with former White House advisor David Gergen, who worked under presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton, to consult on the series. The company acquired the rights from French producers Tetra Media Studio and Macondo.

The series, which originally aired on France 2, was created by Carlos writer Dan Frank and follows the brutal competition between two rival political communications advisors after the French president is assassinated.

This comes after Endemol Studios has already had its Dutch crime thriller Penoza picked up as Red Widow by ABC and a pilot order for Low Winter Sun at cable network AMC.

“Les Hommes de l’ Ombre offers a unique and ambitious format to develop a relevant, timeless and compelling American drama with original characters that bring the audience behind the scenes of high-stakes politics, starting with a presidential political campaign,” said Maigret.