Paramount+ Announces Slate of International Originals

Paramount+ today announced a slate of original series that will debut around the world, a first step towards the streamer’s plan to commission 150 international originals by 2025. The timing of the announcement lines up with plans to expand Paramount+ into The U.K. and Ireland on June 22, followed by expansions into Italy in September; and Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and France in December.  The idea is to offer premium locally-originated content in addition to broad-appeal global content, hopefully making the streamer feel less like an exclusively American export and more like a familiar experience to international viewers.

The new slate follows the streamer’s announcement of originals from around the world, including Sexy Beast (UK), A Gentleman in Moscow (UK), The Chemistry of Death (Germany), Los Enviados (The Envoys) (Mexico), Cecilia (Mexico), Bosé (Spain), Fallaci (Italy), At Midnight (Mexico), The Signal (France), Impact (France), and more.

“Paramount’s story began with the longest running studio in Hollywood, and today we span the globe with our worldwide production studios that create hits for audiences around the world, which now live all in one place: Paramount+,” said Marco Nobili, Executive Vice President and International General Manager of Paramount+, in a statement. “As the service continues to expand internationally, there’s a great opportunity for content to travel globally, opening up a world of opportunities for talent and creators as we plan to commission 150 international originals by 2025, while delivering incredible value to subscribers on Paramount+.”

The slate includes the following titles:   

1. Murder of God’s Banker (International): This 4-part docuseries recounts the murder of Italian fugitive banker Roberto Calvi, whose body is found hanging off a London bridge. Although his death was initially declared a suicide, it is later uncovered that many wanted Calvi dead. He had presided over the collapse of a major Italian bank whose largest shareholder was none other than the Vatican. This revelation blows the lid off the secretive world of the Vatican’s financial system- a world populated by priests, mobsters, and neo-fascists. What looks like the simple story of a dead banker becomes one of international intrigue. Produced by CreativeChaos vmg in association with VIS, to debut on Paramount+ in all international markets.

2. MASK: Marie Antoinette Serial Killer (France): An 8-hour young adult fantasy horror thriller created and developed by Executive Producers Beth Tapper and Mitch Watson. Leila Smith (Lockout, Hitman, Find Me in Paris) also acts as Executive Producer for the series. Based upon the novel “Marie Antoinette Serial Killer” by author Katie Alender, the series follows four young American girls on spring break in Paris. While exploring the edgy side of the city, they find themselves caught up in a mysterious, almost supernatural murder spree that soon becomes very personal. Could the murderer be the ghost of the late queen Marie Antoinette? And why is it chasing them? Currently in advanced development, the series is produced by leading prodco Cottonwood Media (David Michel, Cécile Lauritano & Zoé Carrera Allaix) and VIS. It will debut exclusively on Paramount+ in France and all international markets.

3. A Thin Line (Germany): Young “hacktivist” twin sisters Anna (Saskia Rosendahl) and Benni (Hanna Hilsdorf) are inseparable in their quest to expose environmental wrongdoing by any means necessary. But when their hack into a government server leads to a police raid, Anna is captured and Benni disappears into the underground. When it becomes apparent Benni is lending her skills to a radical new terrorist group that does not shy away from violent action against state and corporations, the sisters suddenly find themselves on opposite sides of the question: What line are you willing to cross for something you believe in? Produced by Weydemann Bros. Serial Drama in association with VIS, to debut exclusively on Paramount+ in all international markets.

4. The Sheikh (Der Scheich) (Germany): Inspired by true events, The Sheikh tells the story of a one-of-a-kind con artist. Ringo (Björn Meyer), a simple man ridiculed as the village idiot in his hometown, reinvents himself as the heir of an Arabic fortune. With nothing but a bunch of tall tales and a fabricated bank statement for $8 billion, he becomes every Swiss investor’s dream, bringing Switzerland’s political and economic system to the brink of a national crisis. Created and written by multi-award-winning filmmaker Dani Levy (Alles auf Zucker!, Die Känguru-Chroniken), who directs together with Johannes Naber (Curveball, Zeit der Kannibalen), and stars Petra Schmidt-Schaller, Sylvester Groth, Carol Schuler, Philippe Graber and Pasquale Aleardi in additional roles. The tragicomic series is produced by X Filme Creative Pool and VIS, to debut exclusively on Paramount+ in all international markets.

5. CIRCEO (Italy): CIRCEO tells the story of the aftermath of the crime that came to be known as “The Circeo Massacre”, which upset Italy in the 1970s, after two teenage girls were found in the trunk of a car in Rome, naked, wrapped in blankets and drenched in blood. One was dead, the other one alive. Focusing on the trial that followed and centering on the lone surviving victim, Donatella, the series reflects on a watershed moment in the path of the emancipation of Italian women, demanding (and eventually obtaining) the wholesale revision of laws on sexual violence. CIRCEO is written by Flaminia Gressi, Viola Rispoli and Lisa Nur Sultan and directed by Andrea Molaioli. Produced by Cattleya in partnership with VIS for Paramount+ and Rai in Italy, the series will also debut on Paramount+ in France and GSA.

6. Sinaloa’s First Lady (Mexico): Starring and produced by John Leguizamo with Frida Torresblanco also producing, this narrative series will chronicle the fascinating yet volatile life of El Chapo’s infamous Beauty Queen Bride, Emma Coronel — an innocent farm girl turned fierce icon who rises to become Mexico’s most formidable crime wife. A story of love, sex, drugs, and danger. Produced by VIS in association with Braven Films, the series has been greenlit for development to debut exclusively on Paramount+ in Latin America and all international markets.

7. One Must Die (Mexico): A suspense thriller movie that centers around seven people who are kidnapped and suddenly find themselves part of a deadly game. As the clock ticks, to survive the seven participants must choose one to die and the chosen one will have to agree. Starring the talented Manolo Cardona, Maribel Verdú, Carla Adell, Juan Carlos Remolina, Adriana Paz, Dagoberto Gama, Fernando Becerril, and director Manolo Cardona. Produced by VIS in association with 11:11 FILMS to debut exclusively in all international markets.

Paramount+ also revealed casting details for the previously announced original, The Chemistry of Death (Simon Becketts Die Chemie des Todes) (Germany), which will debut on the service in all international markets:

1. The thrilling psychological crime series based on Simon Beckett’s bestselling novels will star Harry Treadaway (Penny Dreadful, Mr Mercedes, Star Trek: Picard) as forensic anthropologist Dr. David Hunter, alongside Katie Leung (The Peripheral, The Wheel of Time), Jeanne Goursaud (Barbarians, Para: We Are Kind), Nick Blood (Close to Me, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Amy Nuttall (Why Didn’t They Ask Evans?, Downton Abbey), David Hayman (Fisherman’s Friends, Top Boy) and Hardy Krüger Jr (Uppercut, Stauffenberg). Shooting of the six-episode series began mid-May and will cover locations in Scotland and Norfolk until the end of August.