English Entertainment
Telemundo Studios & Keshet International joins hand for Spanish series
MUMBAI: Telemundo Studios and Keshet International (KI) have announced a scripted deal to co-develop and produce a new original Spanish language series to air on Telemundo Network. The series will be the first Spanish language original production to be developed under the KI banner and will be co-produced with Telemundo Studios.
The development of the Spanish language series will be led by senior VP Perla Farias, Scripted Development for Telemundo Studios. The series will be produced by Telemundo Studios.
KI’s Head of Latin America, Kelly Wright, will oversee the project on behalf of the distribution and production group.
Telemundo Network is the #1 Spanish-language television network among adults 18-49 and adults 18-34, at 10PM timeslot, season-to-date. In addition, it is the #1 broadcast network in Q2 2016, regardless of language, among adults 18-34 during its Monday through Friday at 10PM, bolstered by the Telemundo Super Series such as “El Señor de Los Cielos,” “Señora Acero” and “La Querida del Centauro” competing against the largest broadcast English-language networks across the US.
“Keshet is known for producing powerful, unconventional and bold scripted series,” said Telemundo Network president Luis Silberwasser. “We are very excited to partner with Keshet on this development deal and about the prospects of what we can create together.”
“As we step up the pace of our expansion in Latin America, original development will be a top priority,” said Wright. “Telemundo produces excellent, gripping content that commands impressive numbers in the U.S., and this collaboration between our best developers will deliver a new pipeline of premium programming to the channel.”
The news comes during a period of rapid growth for KI in Latin America. It recently announced the hire of Frank Scheuermann as Head of Development and Production for the region, where he is charged with expanding the business’ local production and development capabilities.
English Entertainment
Ellison takes his Paramount-Warner Bros case straight to theater owners
The Skydance chief goes to CinemaCon with promises and a skeptical crowd waiting
CALIFORNIA: David Ellison strode into a room packed with thousands of cinema owners and executives at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on Thursday and did something rather bold: he looked them in the eye and asked them to trust him.
The chief executive of Paramount Skydance vowed that his company would release a minimum of 30 films a year if regulators greenlight its proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, a deal that has made theater owners deeply, and loudly, nervous.
“I wanted to look every single one of you in the eye and give you my word,” Ellison told the crowd. “Once we combine with Warner Bros, we are going to make a minimum of 30 films annually across both studios.”
It was a confident pitch. Whether it landed is another matter. Cinema operators have already called on regulators to block the deal, and scepticism in the room was hardly concealed.
Ellison pushed back by pointing to recent form. Paramount, born from the merger of Paramount Global and Skydance Media last August, plans to release 15 films this year, nearly double the eight it put out in 2025. Progress, he argued, was already underway.
He also threw theater owners a bone they have long been chasing: all films, he pledged, would run exclusively in cinemas for a minimum of 45 days, drawing applause from a crowd that has spent years fighting for exactly that commitment across the industry.
“People can speculate all they want,” Ellison said, “but I am standing here today telling you personally that you can count on our complete commitment. And we’ll show you we mean it.”
Fine words. The regulators, however, will have the last one.
