Endemol making mixed martial arts drama for DirecTV

Endemol’s North American division is making a new drama series set in the world of professional mixed martial arts for US pay TV provider DirecTV.

Navy St. (WT) will be shot in LA and debut on DirecTV’s Audience Network this autumn. The one-hour drama will run to ten episodes.

It will tell the story of Alvey Henderson, a former MMA champion striving to keep his training facility financially afloat while struggling to connect with his two eldest sons and his estranged wife. Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) will play the lead.

The show was created by Byron Balasco (Detroit 1-8-7) who will also be the showrunner when it goes into production in May.

DirecTV has been steadily commissioning for Audience, formerly known as The 101 Network. It initially revived cable series Damages and Friday Night Lights before moving into fully original production with Entertainment One’s Thandie Newton cop series Rogue.