Fremantle closes global sales for "The Responder" drama

Fremantle has announced a raft of global pre-sale deals for the police drama "The Responder," stars Martin Freeman as a police officer working a grueling series of night shifts on the streets of Liverpool, and his new rookie partner played by Adelayo Adedayo.

The distributor has sold the crime drama to BritBox North America, CANAL+ in France, and also other broadcasters that have boarded the series, including Disney+ (Italy), CANAL+ (France and Poland), Magenta TV (Germany), Movistar (Spain), RTL (Hungary), Pickbox (Croatia, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro), Cosmote TV (Greece), Viasat (Russia & CIS) and Rozhlas A Telvize, (Slovakia). Outside of Europe, BritBox have acquired the series for North America, TELUS Presents for Canada, pubcaster SBS for Australia with CANAL+ and MNET bringing The Responder to audiences in Africa. Dazzler has also acquired DVD and EST* rights for the UK & Ireland.

Rebecca Dundon, VP Scripted, Fremantle, said: “To partner with such an exciting mix of esteemed international buyers is a testament to the strength of this series; a police drama like no other that promises to surprise, excite and challenge audiences with its truly captivating and heartfelt narrative and world-class acting led by Martin Freeman. We do not doubt that this is just the beginning for this truly remarkable series, a show that has become a firm favorite amongst critics and audiences both here in the UK and around the world.”

The 6x60’ acclaimed crime drama for BBC One penned by Tony Schumacher and produced by Fremantle-backed Dancing Ledge Productions was premiered on BBC One on Monday 24th January to a host of five-star reviews and with a consolidated 7-day audience of 7.6 million. Fremantle continues to handle the international distribution of the series.

Laurence Bowen, Executive Producer for "The Responder" and CEO of Dancing Ledge Productions, said: “We’re thrilled 'The Responder' will be resonating with audiences around the world. The authenticity, boldness, and universality of Tony’s writing make him one of the great new screenwriting stars, and having Martin capture that authorship and then transport it onto the screen is what makes the series very special. This is a police series for our times.”