Under the deal, the UK production and distribution group will collaborate with Sagafilm to co-develop scripted series for various international services, with NBCUniversal Global Distribution handling world sales on those projects.

The partnership is an extension of the working relationship that Reykjavik-based Sagafilm had initiated with Sky Vision (former global sales arm of Sky, now folded into NBCUniversal Global Distribution) on the series Flatey Enigma. “We had a wonderful experience working with Sky Vision and when their team became part of Sky Studios, it was only natural for us to extend our relationship,” said Kjartan Thor Thordarson, CEO Sagafilm Nordic.

The deal was announced on Monday, in conjunction with a similar partnership with UK-based Free@last TV. Founded in June 2019 following Comcast’s purchase of the European pay TV platform Sky, Sky Studios develops, produces and funds over 50 original programmes across Europe, initiated by its outposts in the UK, Germany and Italy, part-owned companies in the UK and the US or through third party acquisitions. Fuelled by the global success of original dramas such as Chernobyl (co-produced with HBO) Patrick Melrose, Babylon Berlin or Riviera, Sky Studios said it intends to more than double its investment in original content to £1 billion a year by 2024.

Explaining to nordicfilmandtvnews.com how the partnership with Sky Studios would impact Sagafilm’s editorial strategy, Thordarson said: “Our editorial line fits perfectly our deal with Sky Studios, as we changed our strategy a few years ago to reach a broader audience, with Stella Blómkvist as the first series under our “make local go global” strategy. “ “We will continue to create Icelandic series and at the same time, we will venture into other Nordic language series, the way we did with the Swedish suspense thriller Thin Ice, co-produced with Yellow Bird. We also have an English-language show in our agenda, the upcoming Viaplay commissioned Cold Courage, produced by Finland’s Luminoir, with Irish and Belgian production companies Vico Films and Potemkin."

The first series to be handled by NBCUniversal under the Sky Studios deal will be announced very soon.

Meanwhile Sagafilm’s upcoming political show The Minister starring Ólafur Darri Ólafsson is scheduled to premiere on RÚV in September 2020.