ICS Nordic taps Brendan Foley to adapt geopolitical Finnish thriller for TV

Tampere-based ICS Nordic has signed writer and executive producer Brendan Foley to adapt Operation: Arctic Fox into an ambitious geopolitical thriller and action crime drama series.

Brendan Foley

Published in 2023, Operation: Arctic Fox is the third novel in a series by military affairs journalist and officer in the Finnish Army Reserve, Helena Immonen.

Set against Russia and China’s escalating Arctic ambitions, the story follows a Finnish family of operatives navigating military conflict, biological warfare and global espionage as geopolitical tensions reach a breaking point.

ICS Nordic first optioned the novel as part of its landmark development pact with WSOY, Finland’s largest publishing group in 2023.

The initiative invites authors to take an active stake in the screen adaptation of their work, with Immonen set to executive produce the series alongside Foley and Finnish media executives Ilkka Hynninen and Ilkka Rahkonen, who founded ICS Nordic in 2022.

Foley’s recent credits include serving as creator and executive producer of 2025 series Sherlock & Daughter which aired on The CW and HBO Max in the US and was also sold to various Nordic public broadcasters and SBS in Australia.

He previously co-wrote international Nordic noir Cold Courage (Lionsgate/Viaplay) and wrote both seasons of Finnish streamer Elisa Viihde’s series The Man Who Died for Reelmedia and Germany’s nDF, adapted from Antti Tuomainen’s novel. He was previously an author and international freelance features journalist.