eOne, IDW link up on comic copros

Producer and distributor Entertainment One Television (eOne) is to partner with US producer IDW Entertainment to jointly develop, fund and produce series based on comic books and graphic novels from IDW’s publisher parent.

David Ozer

The partners will fully fund development of projects and jointly handle US network sales, aiming to get direct-to-series commitments from broadcast or cable channels. eOne will handle international distribution.

Circle of Confusion, executive producer of eOne property The Walking Dead, which eOne distributes, will drive the creative development and production of projects under its own deal with IDW.

Projects will be executive produced by Circle’s Rick Jacobs and David Alpert; IDW Publishing CEO Ted Adams; IDW Entertainment president David Ozer; eOne Television CEO John Morayniss; and eOne senior VP of filmed entertainment Benedict Carver, who will oversee the deal for eOne.

IDW Entertainment was launched last autumn by San Diego-based IDW Publishing, whose titles include Hasbro’s The Transformers, GI Joe and My Little Pony; Paramount’s Star Trek; Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; Toho’s Godzilla; and the Locke & Key series.

John Morayniss

The division said at the time that it was working on projects including Life Undead, from the comic book by Paul Zbyszewski (writer-producer of Lost and Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD); Brooklyn Animal Control, based on the comic by JT Petty and artist Stephen Thompson; and V Wars, from a comic edited by best-selling author Jonathan Maberry.

Ozer said: “We look forward to collaborating with eOne and Circle of Confusion to bring our properties to life and anticipate announcing very shortly our first project under the deal.”

Morayniss added: “The IDW team brings with them not only an expansive catalogue of captivating titles but the creative sensibility and instinct for developing their properties into successful franchises.”