ITV Studios buys into Monumental

ITV Studios Global Entertainment (ITVSGE) has acquired a minority stake in the indie production company founded by Oscar-nominated film producers Alison Owen and Debra Hayward.

Alison Owen

The agreement will see ITVSGE exclusively distribute all television projects from the recently launched Monumental Television, which is already in advanced development on several major scripted series.

The news comes as ITV eyes a potential purchase of The Weinstein Company’s TV division in a deal worth up to US$950m.

Owen is the founder of Ruby Film and Television, the production company she established in 1998.

Along with producing feature films including the Oscar-nominated Saving Mr Banks and Jane Eyre, Ruby Film and Television was behind high-end television dramas Case Histories and Dancing on the Edge, and the Emmy-winning Temple Grandin.

Hayward, meanwhile, most recently produced the Golden Globe-winning Les Misérables. She was formerly head of films at Working Title, where she had creative responsibility for the company’s feature film slate including the Bridget Jones’s Diary franchise, Atonement and the critically acclaimed and multi-Oscar-nominated Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

Owen said: “The international television landscape has changed out of all recognition. It’s not just that the wall between television and film has collapsed, it’s that the digital business has opened up a whole new space that is ready to house drama every bit as cinematic as movies, full of high-quality writing and just as attractive to A-list talent.”

The Monumental deal is the latest in a string of acquisitions by ITV. Recent high-value purchases include John de Mol’s Talpa Media, Pawn Stars outfit Leftfield Pictures and Teen Wolf Producer DiGa Vision, among others.