Apple Orders Spanish-Language Drama Series Inspired by Documentary ‘Midnight Family’

EXCLUSIVE: Leonard Cohen’s relationship with muse Marianne Ihlen is going under the microscope in a 1960s-set drama co-production for Norwegian broadcaster NRK.

EXCLUSIVE: Josh Bonzie (The Politician) is set as a lead opposite Victoria Pedretti in Saint X, Hulu’s eight-part series from writer Leila Gerstein and director Dee Rees.

Carson Burton Emmy-award winning composer Geoff Zanelli is slated to compose the music for “The First Lady,” premiering on Showtime. The new hour-long anthology drama follows the lives of three of America’s First Ladies and stars Viola Davis as Michelle Obama, Michelle Pfeiffer as Betty Ford and Gillian Anderson as Eleanor Roosevelt.Zanelli served as composer of films such as “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales,” “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” and “Christopher Robin,” and he won an Emmy award for his work in the Steven Spielberg and Dreamworks miniseries “Into the West.” He also was nominated for HBO’s “The Pacific,” another Spielberg collaboration.“I’ve had the honor of writing music for ‘The Pacific’ and ‘Into The West,’ both shows about distinct times in America’s history, but nothing as intimate as ‘The First Lady,'” Zanelli said.

The CW is diving into the legal world with its latest series, “Family Law.” The network announced Thursday that it had acquired the one-hour Canadian drama series, distributed by Entertainment One.Created by “Degrassi” scripter Susin Nielsen, “Family Law” stars Jewel Staite and Victor Garber. It follows lawyer and recovering alcoholic Abigail Bianchi (Staite) struggling to put her career and family back together after hitting rock bottom.

The CW continues to expand its scripted acquisition slate with the addition of Canadian drama series Family Law, a one-hour legal drama, from Entertainment One. A premiere date is TBD.

J. Kim Murphy NBCUniversal has announced that it is developing “Pinned,” a new dramatic scripted series about the world of wrestling.“Pinned” comes from Universal Content Productions and World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. The production is billed as a dramatic series with a logline touting “an adrenalized upstairs-downstairs soap that gives a behind-the-scenes look at a fictional wrestling promotion and the unforgettable characters that populate it.”“Pinned” will offer a look into the world of wrestling culture, documenting the mayhem both within the locker room and the boardroom of wrestling organizations.Craig O’Neill serves as an executive producer on the series, alongside Tom Rinaldi.

EXCLUSIVE: Two-time Emmy nominee and SAG Award winner Matt Walsh has boarded the Apple Original limited series Manhunt about the Lincoln assassination and aftermath.

Nickelodeon is expanding its preschool series slate with greenlights for Face’s Music Party, a music variety show that combines animation and live action featuring a reimagining of its beloved ’90s Nick Jr. mascot; animated series Bossy Bear, from husband and wife team David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim (UglyDolls) and based on the popular book series by Horvath; and animated series HexVet, based on the eponymous Boom!Studios graphic novels by Sam Davies.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief“Barons,” a surf and business drama series that plays this week at Series Mania, is a calling card for the newly re-structured Australian operations of TV giant Fremantle.In recent weeks, leadership of the unscripted side of the business has been put in the hands of Eureka, a company in which it bought an increased shareholding last year. That leaves the remainder, under the management of Greg Woods, focused on high end drama and documentaries.Insiders have called the new emphasis on premium drama and big factual pieces a new chapter for the company.Other upcoming shows include the recently wrapped “Heartbreak High” for Netflix, “Significant Others” for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and “Jump” for local streamer Stan.

Betty Gilpin is headed back to streaming on Peacock.

Betty Gilpin (GLOW, The Hunt) has been tapped as the lead of Mrs. Davis, Peacock’s new drama series written and executive produced by Tara Hernandez and Damon Lindelof. Emmy-winning director Owen Harris (Black Mirror: San Junipero, Brave New World) will direct and executive produce multiple episodes, including the first episode, of the series, which comes from Warner Bros. Television, where both Hernandez and Lindelof are under overall deals.

Emmy nominee Adina Porter (Underground) and Clark Backo (Letterkenny) are set as leads opposite LaKeith Stanfield in The Changeling, Apple TV+’s upcoming drama series based on Victor LaValle’s bestselling book of the same name.

EXCLUSIVE: The streaming revolution has finally gifted European creatives the opportunity to write sci-fi and other genres, according to Quoc Dang Tran, the creator of Disney+’s first French-language drama Parallèles.

EXCLUSIVE: WE tv and AllBlk greenlight Kold x Windy, a new scripted drama series from creators Kenny Young, Phil James, and Vernon “Xtreme” Brown. The 8-episode project, We tv’s return to scripted TV, is set to premiere in the fall via WE tv and AllBlk.

Manori Ravindran International EditorUniversal International Studios has struck a deal with one of the hottest players in Spanish-language programming, Buendía Estudios.Under the deal, the company, whose recent credits include the hit dramas “Cardo” and “Veneno,” will co-develop and co-produce Spanish-language series with Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group. Formed in 2020, Buendía Estudios is a joint venture between Atresmedia and Telefónica’s Movistar Plus, and incorporates the in-house player formerly known as Atresmedia Studios.The company, which is led by CEO Ignacio Corrales, told Variety earlier this year that, in addition to producing for Spain and Latin America, it’s looking to develop projects from the region that are global-facing, in the vein of international Spanish-language triumphs like “Money Heist” and “Velvet.” A slate of around 40 projects across various genres and formats is currently in the works.

EXCLUSIVE: Mexican star Omar Chaparro (How To Be a Latin Lover, Detective Pikachu) is set to lead and produce the English-language TV comedy/action series Coyotes M.C. from Moxie 88. The project is currently being pitched to streamers/buyers.

Sasha Urban editorTelevisaUnivision’s fledgling streamer ViX Plus has ordered an untitled biographical series about the life of Mexican actor María Félix.Produced by a mostly female team of creatives, the series is the first to tackle the story of Félix, also known as “La Doña,” who died in 2002. The icon will be played by three Mexican actresses — Sandra Echeverría (“La Usurpadora”), Ximena Romo (“Dime Cuándo Tú”) and Abril Vergara — who will each portray Félix at different ages.“At ViX Plus, creating content that reflects our culture and illuminates our unique and diverse stories – all in Spanish, is our priority,” said Vincenzo Gratteri, senior vice president of development for ViX Plus.

UPDATE, 7:40 AM: Starz has released the full-length trailer for Watergate drama series Gaslit, starring Julia Roberts and Sean Penn. You can watch it above.

Apple TV+ has set its first-ever all Spanish-language series Midnight Family from Pablo and Juan de Dios Larraín. Cast includes Academy Award nominee Yalitza Aparicio (Roma), Joaquín Cosío (Narcos: Mexico, Suicide Squad 2), and Óscar Jaenada (The Losers, Luis Miguel: The Series).

EXCLUSIVE: Fresh from his Oscar nomination, Belfast star Ciarán Hinds is joining Netflix spy drama series Treason.