Canal+ adds Keshet’s controversial Boys

Our Boys follows true events leading up to the 2014 Gaza conflict

French pay TV operator Canal+ has bought Israeli drama series Our Boys from distributor Keshet International (KI), just days after Israel prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the show anti-Semitic.

A coproduction from HBO Studios and Keshet Studios, Our Boys is based on events that led to the outbreak of war on the Gaza Strip in 2014 and follows the investigation into the murder of 16-year-old Palestinian Muhammad Abu Khdeir by Jewish extremists in Jerusalem.

The 10-part limited series premiered on US cabler HBO last month and has been picked up by Hot, Yes, Cellcom tv and Partner TV in Israel. It also debuted on HBO Europe and Latin America last month and has now been bought by France’s Canal+.

In a Facebook post on Friday, Netanyahu condemned Our Boys as “anti-Semitic” and called for a boycott of Channel 12, also known as Keshet 12 – a network owned by Keshet Media Group.

Our Boys was created by Hagai Levi, Joseph Cedar and Tawfik Abu-Wael and filmed in Israel. Levi and Cedar are also among the exec producers, alongside Avi Nir, Alon Shtruzman, Karni Ziv, Peter Traugott, Rachel Kaplan, Noah Stollman and Michael Lombardo.

In related news, Dutch network NET5 has bought Israeli dating format 12 Steps to Love from KI, marking the show’s first international sale.

12 Steps to Love follows a single celebrity as they attempt to find ‘the one.’ The original Koda Communications and Keshet Broadcasting series starred Israeli dancer Anna Aronov and aired on Keshet 12 last summer.

NET5’s Dutch adaptation will feature pianist, composer and singer Iris Hond and will be produced locally by Vincent TV Productions. Vincent Tervoert will exec produce the series, which will premiere later this month.