WBD streamer Max unveils three French dramas ahead of launch

Malditos (Source: WBD, William Dupuy)

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)’s streamer Max has ordered three scripted shows from France, marking the first commissions from the country for the service ahead of an expected launch later this year.

Clément Schwebig, president of WBD in Western Europe & Africa, unveiled the shows at Series Mania Forum in France and said the streamer would offer “a diversified range” of programming targeting all demos.

“Our ambition with our French original productions is to root Max firmly in the French market to an audience that is demanding when it comes to series. Our goal in terms of original productions is ambitious, and we will be covering scripted, documentaries and unscripted.” Schwebig said.

Vera Peltekian, VP of originals at Max in France, added that the aim was to create a slate of shows that are “universal, unique and timeless”, with Clémentine Bobin, director of scripted, said she was targeting “an adult audience with bold series that are director and author driven.”

The first three local shows unveiled include Black Lies, a 4 x 60-minute series based on a true story that takes place on the night of the Paris terrorist attacks. It follows a woman who quickly connects with a group of victims to create a support group for survivors, but her connection with the tragedy is not as it seems, threatening to unravel a deeper web of lies.

StudioFact Stories produces with June Films, and Just Philippot (The Swarm) directs. It has been written by Fanny Burdino, Jean-Baptiste Delafon, Samuel Doux and Alexandre Kauffmann. The story is loosely based on the non-fiction book La Mythomane du Bataclan from Alexandre Kauffmann.

Also on the slate is crime thriller Malditos (working title), a 7 x 60-minute show following a mother trying to save her family. It is being produced by Mediawan-owned White Lion Films, having been created by writers Jean Charles Hue and Olivier Prieur.

The third show on the slate is an as-yet untitled 8 x 30-minute adaptation of Rabbi Delphine Horvilleur’s Living With Our Dead, with Fédération Studios producing. Noé Debré and Benjamin Charbit have adapted the book, which tracks a 28-year-old female rabbi’s attempts to guide others while grappling with the fundamentals of love and family.

WBD confirmed in October that it would be rolling Max out across Europe this year, with more than 20 countries in the region set to receive the rebooted streamer.