Sales round-up: ProSieben visits ‘Grantchester’; Viacom takes ‘Seinfeld’ on cable; Disney Junior’s ‘Dino Ranch’ deal

Grantchester

Grantchester welcomes ProSieben’s Gold

ProSieben in Germany has picked up the first four seasons of UK period drama Grantchester for its Sat.1 Gold network.

The show, plus a Christmas special, will air in a UK programming slot on the network following the deal with Endemol Shine International (ESI), which sells the series globally.

It is based on James Runcie’s Grantchester Mysteries novels and is from Endemol Shine-owned prodco Kudos. The story follows a vicar living in the eponymous English town near Cambridge during the 1950s as he helps to solve crimes.

The series is produced for ITV in the UK and PBS’s drama-skewing Masterpiece strand in the US, with the show entering its fifth run in July. It has been a perennial best-seller for ESI, which has sold the show into 176 countries to date.

Michaela Kiermaier, VP of channel management for Sat.1 Gold, said: “Our audience loves nostalgic and entertaining crime stories with lovingly narrated characters. Grantchester will be another highlight series that perfectly matches our British Friday line-up.”

Viacom snaffles Seinfeld on cable

Seinfeld

Viacom has picked up exclusive US cable rights to all 180 episodes of Seinfeld from Sony Pictures Television.

Beginning in October 2021, the full library will air through Viacom’s entertainment brands including Comedy Central, Paramount Network and TV Land. Additionally, catch-up episodes will be available across Viacom’s VOD services, websites and apps.

“We’re extremely proud to bring this little-known series to our viewers,” said Kent Alterman, president of Comedy Central, Paramount Network, TV Land and Vandelay Industries. “With the right programming and promotion, we believe we’ll finally get Seinfeld the recognition it truly deserves, as merely the greatest sitcom of all-time.”

Seinfeld, a West/Shapiro Production in association with Castle Rock Entertainment, was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It debuted on NBC in 1989 and, after slowly achieving cult status, concluded in 1998 after 180 episodes. Last week Netflix revealed it had picked up global streaming rights to the US sitcom in a major coup for the business.

eOne’s Ricky Zoom goes global

Ricky Zoom

Nick Jr and Channel 5’s preschool programming block Milkshake! have struck deals with Entertainment One (eOne) for preschool property Ricky Zoom.

The show will debut on October 5 on Nick Jr in the UK before moving over to Milkshake! in May next year.

eOne’s Monica Candiani, EVP of international content sales for family and brands, said: “Nick Jr. and Milkshake! have been our partners for 15 years with Peppa Pig and 10 years of Ben & Holly’s Little Kingdom and have a strong reputation for delivering top-tier programming in this crucial market.

“These new broadcast partnerships reflect our commitment to reaching audiences on the very best platforms and we’re confident that the show’s themes of vehicles, adventure and teamwork will resonate strongly with British preschoolers.”

The show has already been picked up by Nickelodeon in the US, Germany’s Super RTL and Gulli in France among numerous others.

Disney Junior ushers in Dino Ranch

Disney Junior in the US has picked up animated preschool series Dino Ranch from Canada’s Boat Rocker Studios.

The 52 x 11 minutes CG animated preschool series was created by Matt Fernandes of Industrial Brothers and will be produced by Industrial Brothers and Boat Rocker Studios. The series is currently in pre-production and set to premiere on Disney Junior US in 2021, followed by an international roll-out.

Dino Ranch follows the adventures of the Cassidy family as they tackle life in a fantastical, setting where dinosaurs still roam.

Jon Rutherford, managing director and president of rights at Boat Rocker Studios, said: “We are delighted to be working with Disney on Dino Ranch as they are the perfect platform to help us launch this entertaining new show in the US. Matt’s unique vision of combining cowboys/cowgirls and dinosaurs has huge global appeal, and we look forward to building Dino Ranch into a global franchise.”

Boat Rocker Studios will manage the global distribution, brand and licensing of the series and said it is in advanced discussions with a number of partners, including a global toy deal set to be announced shortly.