Canal+ catches del Toro’s Strain

French pay TV operator Canal+ has picked up a US cable drama about vampires, based on novels co-written by Pan’s Labyrinth director Guillermo del Toro.

The Strain, which first aired on FX last summer, is a thriller about a doctor who is called to investigate a mysterious viral outbreak of vampirism in New York.

The novels were penned by del Toro and Chuck Hogan (The Town), who both exec produce the TV series alongside showrunner and writer Carlton Cuse (Lost, Bates Motel). It will start airing on Canal+ Series from February.

The 13×60’ first season, which premiered in the US in July, is sold internationally by 20th Century Fox Television Distribution and has already been picked up by UK digital channel Watch and Fox8 in Australia.

FX extended The Strain into a second season in August, before the first run had finished.