Disney opens Turkish Practice

The Turkish arm of the Walt Disney Company has adapted US medical drama Private Practice for a local broadcaster.

Merhaba Hayat

Fox TV will premiere the show, called Merhaba Hayat, next month after ordering a 23-episode season one.

It is produced by Disney and Medyapim, and is the first time the format has been remade outside the US.

Filmed in Istanbul and featuring an all-Turkish cast, the format will closely follow the original US series, which was a spin-off of Grey’s Anatomy. Both were created by Shonda Rhimes.

Private Practice, which is produced by Disney-owned ABC Studios, follows a renowned neonatal surgeon who starts wok at a Los Angeles medical centre. It is now in its sixth season on ABC and has been sold to more than 200 territories around the world.

Disney and Medyapim previously teamed up to remake Desperate Housewives, known locally as Umutsuz Ev Kadinlari, for Kanal D. A Turkish version of Grey’s Anatomy, called Doktorlar, also launched in 2006, produced by Medyapim for Show TV.

Other Disney formats to receive international makeovers include Desperate Housewives in Latin America, The Golden Girls in Russia, Greece, Israel and Spain, and Brothers & Sisters and Grey’s Anatomy in Colombia.