Topic Nabs Exclusive US, Canadian rights to the beta movie crime series
US streaming service Subject has entered into an exclusive agreement for US and Canadian rights with Germany Beta movie for four European crime series before this year Micom TV show store in Cannes.
Crime and thriller Topic, part of First Look Entertainment, picked up the third season of the critically acclaimed Austro-German series “Pagan Peak”; Finnish title “Helsinki Syndrome”; “Silent Road” from Greece; and Croatian-Ukrainian co-production “The Silence”.
The deal also includes the renewal of the Italian political thriller “1992” and its sequels “1993” and “1994”. Italy’s “House Of Cards” explores how Italian politics was rocked to the core by a massive criminal investigation into widespread corruption in the 1990s.
Coming on the eve of its third anniversary, the deal reinforces Topic’s commitment to bringing crime and suspense thrillers from around the world to North American subscribers, the company said.
Inspired by the Nordic series The Bridge and co-produced by Wiedemann & Berg Television with Sky Germany’s Epo-Film, “Pagan Peak” follows German detective Ellie (Julia Jentsch) and her Austrian colleague Gedeon (Nicholas Ofczarek), who in season 3, have become bitter enemies, but they are still forced to deal with mysterious murders on both sides of the German-Austrian border.
“Beta has been an invaluable partner to work with since Topic’s launch, and we’re excited to continue working with them as we approach our third anniversary of curating high-profile crime and thriller programming around the world,” said Jennifer Liang, President of Topic. vice president of programming strategy, acquisitions and sales. “These hit crime-themed Miniseries and series, including ‘Pagan Peak,’ one of Topic’s most-watched franchises, help us continue our promise to our subscribers to deliver the best crime programming in the world.”
In “The Helsinki Syndrome”, Elias Karo (Peter Franzén), a caring husband and father, takes four journalists hostage and forces them to expose the bank executives and district court judges who conspired against his family and made them lose everything, leading to his father’s death. The eight-part series, which also features Oona Airola (pictured), is produced by Fisher King, Panache Productions, YLE, Arte and NDR.
The disappearance of a school bus carrying nine elementary school students leaves one of Athens’ most affluent neighborhoods in “Silent Road” in shock. The series follows a detective investigating the case and a young reporter who becomes the only person the kidnappers come to talk to. The 13-episode “Silent Road” is produced by Mega TV in collaboration with Filmiki Productions.
Exploring the depths of Eastern European minor trafficking, “Silence” deals with the mysterious deaths of several young women in the Croatian city of Osijek. While investigating the murders, inspector Vladimir Kovač meets journalist Stribor and Olga, the Ukrainian wife of an influential politician, who discovers that her niece is one of the victims, forming an unlikely group. The six-part series was produced by Drugi Plan and HRT in cooperation with Beta Film, Star Media, OLL.TV and ZDF/Arte.
“A fruitful partnership with Topic has enabled a huge selection of our high-quality European content across the pond to North America,” added Jeffrey Engelen, Beta’s Global Sales Manager for North America.