ABC Signature develops English-language version of TF1 procedural HIP

HIP (High Intellectual Potential) has been acquired in over 100 territories

ABC Signature in the US has picked up the rights to make an English-language version of hit TF1 detective series HIP (High Intellectual Potential) from Newen Connect.

Work has already begun at ABC Signature, a part of Disney Television Studios, to start adapting the scripts of the French-language series, with showrunner, writing team and cast still to be announced.

The deal, with the distribution arm of Newen Studios, a subsidiary of TF1 Group, comes after the French-language series began airing on TF1 in France, La Une in Belgium and RTS Un in Switzerland last year.

A coproduction between Itinéraire Productions, Septembre Productions, TF1, Pictanovo, Be-Films and RTBF, it stars Audrey Fleurot as an intellectually gifted housekeeper who becomes a consultant for a police division in Lille that investigates serious crimes.

The series was created by Alice Chegaray-Breugnot, Stéphane Carrié and Nicolas Jean. Internationally, HIP has been sold into more than 105 territories, while the Czech and Slovakian versions have already been filmed for Nova and Markiza respectively, and are expected to launch soon.

The show is the latest French-language series to be developed for US audiences after A&E remade Les Revenants (The Returned) in 2015.

Rodolphe Buet, managing director at Newen Connect, said: “HIP has been an incredible international success as a French-language title and has won over audiences worldwide, so we are not surprised that there is an appetite for an English-language adaptation.

“We were simply blown away by the enthusiasm of the ABC Signature creative teams and their sense of collaboration in meeting with the French producers. Their desire to build on the tricolore DNA of the original while also adding some additional anglophone flavour immediately convinced us that they were the right partners to develop our hit show for an English-language audience.”