BBC Studios secures deals for "Luther," ‘The Office," "Doctor Foster" Nordic adaptations

BBC Studios’ Nordic production arm has sealed deals with several outlets to produce local versions of British scripted series "Doctor Foster," "Luther" and "The Office." “The Nordic market has seen exponential growth in demand for original dramas over the past three years and BBC Studios is well placed to meet this growing demand through our extensive catalogue of hit British scripted formats,” said Jan Salling, head of BBC Studios Nordics – formats and productions. “These are stories and characters that can resonate with audiences locally, along with benefits of shorter development times from paper to screen.” 

The Denmark-based STV Production has optioned and will co-produce a local adaptation of fly-on-the-wall style mockumentary series The Office. Created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant for the BBC in 2001, the series has already been adapted in several countries, including the US, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, France, Germany and most recently in Poland.

"Take Two Studios," which recently launched in Finland, has meanwhile optioned two BBC Studios scripted dramas. Luther is one of BBC Studios’ top exports, with the UK series having sold to over 230 territories already, including in India, South Korea, Russia and France. Psychological drama "Doctor Foster" was originally written by Mike Bartlett and produced by Drama Republic, telling the story of a trusted doctor whose life implodes when she suspects her husband of having an affair.

The format has already been adapted in South Korea, France, Russia, Turkey, the Philippines and India. The studio is also remaking crime thriller Luther as part of this optioning and co-production agreement. The detective series was originally written by Neil Cross and starred Idris Elba in the lead role as an intellectually brilliant but emotionally impulsive cop.