Sky Deutschland orders trio of scripted series, commits to 60 projects in 2022

Comcast-owned German pay TV broadcaster Sky Deutschland has revealed a trio of new commissions and committed to debuting 60 new German and international projects in 2022.

Elke Walthelm

The expansion of the company’s content pipeline comes following the launch of four new channels in the German market: Sky Crime, Sky Comedy, Sky Nature and Sky Documentaries.

Among the new greenlights is crime drama Autobahn, produced by Action Concept in association with Sky Studios. The 10×45’ drama, filmed in Bavaria, follows a pair of police officer brothers who know how to keep their cool while pursuing suspects in high-speed chases. The lead writers are Sven Frauenhoff and Andreas Brune, with Heiko Schmidt, Andreas Perzl and Frank Jastfelder among the producers.

Set in 2036, Tender Hearts (8×30’) is produced by Odeon Film in association with Sky Studios. It tells the story of a woman whose frustration with her dating life leads her to order a humanoid love robot from an advanced tech firm. Eva Lia Reinegger has been tapped to pen the series, with Pola Beck directing. Executive producers are Perzl, Jastfelder and Katja Herzog.

Chameleon (8×45’), set in a murky world of corporate lobbying, is produced by Isarstraßen Film in association with Sky Studios. The show follows a calculated and smooth operator who begins to question himself after he meets a mysterious lobbyist who both attracts and repels him at the same time. The show is written by lead scribe Christian Jeltsch.

Jane Millichip

The Sky Studios group has expanded its focus on original content in recent years as it seeks to compete with the growing number of SVoD offerings in the European market. Recent greenlights include The Ibiza Affair and The Wasp, both of which are set to air this year, as well as season two of Der Pass, Paradiso, season three of Das Boot, Souls and season four of Babylon Berlin, all set to air next year.

Elke Walthelm, Sky Deutschland’s executive VP and MD of content, said: “In addition to the new titles announced today, we have even more great projects in the pipeline from Sky Studios. We have ambitious plans for Sky Originals in Germany as we double our group-wide investment in original content by 2024. By next year, we will have 60 Sky Originals on our schedule, including new Sky Original series from the UK and Italy.”.

Jane Millichip, Sky Studios’ chief content officer, added: “Across Europe, Sky Studios is creating premium original content like never before; working with the best storytellers from Germany, Italy, the UK and across the world.

“Our production and development pipeline in Germany is particularly exciting with even more new shows announced today, including high-octane series like Autobahn, through to warm and future-looking comedies such as Tender Hearts. German creativity and production are in rude health and we’re pleased to increase investment in order to showcase German storytellers to the world.”