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The Hub in the US, plus more than 50 other broadcasters around the world, has acquired Wizards vs Aliens – the new series from former Doctor Who scribe Russell T Davies.
Wizards vs Aliens
The children’s series – a copro from the BBC and FremantleMedia – debuted in the UK on CBBC last autumn and will now launch stateside on The Hub at some point this year.
The Discovery/Hasbro JV net is one among a string of broadcasters to have acquired rights from the newly restructured FremantleMedia kids and family entertainment arm.
The company signed a five-year pact with the BBC’s children’s division last week and the earlier partnership on Wizards is now bearing fruit.
ABC and UKTV in Australia and New Zealand, HBO Family in Latin America, Canal J in France (Canal J), Canal+ in Poland, and Imagine Media in Israel are among the buyers.
Penned by Davies and Phil Ford (Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures), Wizards vs Aliens follows the adventures of two 16-year old schoolboys, Tom and Benny, who battle to save Earth from the Nekross, an alien race.
Meanwhile, CBBC controller Cheryl Taylor has ordered a second helping (13x30′) of multimedia comedy adventure series Strange Hill High – a coproduction with Fremantle in association with Factory Transmedia.
The second series will air in 2014. Series one of Strange Hill High is due to premiere on CBBC this spring. Combining puppets and digital effects, the series blends everyday classroom antics with fantastical and mysterious goings on.
Production is led by Josh Weinstein (The Simpsons) and stars including John Thomson, Richard Ayoade and Caroline Aherne provide the voices.
Character design comes via British firm Mackinnon & Saunders, whose stop-motion animation and puppets have featured in Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr Fox, Bob the Builder and Rastamouse.
