Legal drama Suits to get Arabic adaptation with TVision, OSN, UMS

The US version of legal drama Suits

US legal drama Suits is set for an Arabic adaptation after NBCUniversal Formats inked a deal with Cairo-based production company TVision, Arabic broadcaster OSN and Egyptian media group United Media Services (UMS).

The adaptation has been commissioned for an initial 30 episodes spanning two seasons.

Production began in January and the show is set to debut on OSN’s free-to-air channels and its streaming app Watchit on April 2. OSN and UMS share the rights in Egypt, while OSN holds the exclusive rights across the rest of the Middle East.

Created by Aaron Korsh and produced by UCP, the original iteration of the show aired on USA Network and ran for nine seasons from 2011 to 2019.

The Arabic remake is written by Mohamed Hefzy and Yasser Abdel Mageed, and directed by Myriam Ahmadi. The show is produced by Tarek El Ganainy, founder and CEO of TVision Media Productions.

The local adaptation features a high-profile cast including Asser Yassin, Ahmed Dawoud, Saba Mubarak, Reem Mostafa, Tara Emad and Mohamed Shahin.

NBCUniversal Formats, which is a division of Universal Studio Group, previously partnered with TVision, OSN and UMS on SNL Arabia, which aired for four seasons.

The Suits adaptation comes after NBCUniversal Formats also inked deals for remakes in both Japan and South Korea.

News of the Middle Eastern adaptation follows a spate of recently announced deals in the region. Last week, Starzplay announced it is launching the first Middle Eastern version of Say Yes to the Dress, in partnership with Discovery. In addition, Middle Eastern production and distribution company S Productions revealed in January that it was adapting Why Women Kill, The Affair and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend after inking a deal with ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group.

“Repurposing this type of show into regional formats is vitally important in the context of Egypt’s ongoing development as a mature and compelling media market,” said Ganainy in a statement.

“While it remains heavily inspired by the American drama, our version is unique and authentic to Egypt, featuring a celebrated cast of regional stars.”

Hassan Abdalla, chairman and CEO of UMS, said: “As a media market, Egypt continues to mature and has an ever-increasing appetite for repurposing international programmes into regional formats.

“We were particularly keen to secure the rights to TVision’s adaptation of Suits – to air exclusively on the UMS channels in Egypt and on Watchit – as it shows a side of Egypt and Egyptian drama not commonly portrayed or recognised. There is no better way to do this than repurposing one of the most popular television shows in the last decade and broadcasting it during Ramadan 2022.”