HBO and BBC are set to co-produce the six-episode drama series Lions (w/t), from creator and executive producer Richard Gadd (Baby Reindeer, Sex Education), with Alexandra Brodski (Somewhere Boy, Rivals) and Eshref Reybrouck (Ferry: The Series and Cheyenne & Lola) attached to direct.
The HBO-BBC series is produced by Wendy Griffin (Limbo, The Lost King) and executive produced by Tally Garner and Morven Reid for Mam Tor Productions (a Banijay UK company), Richard Gadd, and Gaynor Holmes for the BBC, with Gavin Smith for BBC Scotland.
Richard Gadd
When Niall's estranged 'brother' Ruben shows up at his wedding, it leads to an explosion of violence that catapults us back through their lives. Spanning almost forty years from the 1980s to the present day, this ambitious series will cover the highs and lows of the brothers' relationship, from them meeting as teenagers to their falling out as adults – with all the good, bad, terrible, funny, angry, and challenging moments along the way. It will capture the wild energy of a changing city - a changing world, even - and try to get to the bottom of the difficult question... What does it mean to be a man?
Kara Buckley, Senior Vice President HBO Drama Programming, says: “We are tremendously excited to partner with the BBC and Richard Gadd, whose remarkable talent continues to make waves across the globe. With this new, gripping and evocative series, we are proud to welcome Richard to the HBO family."
Richard Gadd, creator, writer and executive producer, says: “Ordering a HBO boxset of The Sopranos, The Wire, or Oz and watching it from start to finish were some of the happiest moments of my childhood. Since then, it has always been a dream of mine to work with HBO and be part of their iconic roster of shows. I am so grateful to Francesca Orsi, Kara Buckley and Clint LaVigne for taking this chance on the show and on Ruben and Niall too who - despite growing up in a dead-end Scottish town - would be absolutely pinching themselves at this! I cannot wait to get started.”
Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, says: “We are delighted that HBO are joining us to bring Richard Gadd’s exquisite Lions scripts to the screen. This is bold, brilliant, one-of-a-kind storytelling and we can’t wait for viewers to see it.”
Louise Thornton, Head of Commissioning BBC Scotland said: “Lions is a superb example of how we can bring high quality storytelling and content rooted in Scotland to audiences across the UK and the world. We’re delighted to be working with our BBC colleagues, Screen Scotland and HBO to bring Richard’s truly innovative scripts to life.”
Background
The series is created, written and executive produced by Richard Gadd alongside executive producers Tally Garner and Morven Reid from Mam Tor Productions, Gaynor Holmes for the BBC and Gavin Smith for BBC Scotland. The series will be directed by Alexandra Brodski and Eshref Reybrouck; and produced by Wendy Griffin. The series is made by Mam Tor Productions for HBO, BBC One, BBC Scotland and BBC iPlayer. Banijay Rights handles international distribution outside the UK & Ireland and US. Lions is supported by Screen Scotland.
Image credits
Richard Gadd image, courtesy of Stanley Morgan