Richard Gadd’s ‘Baby Reindeer’ Followup Heads to HBO — Not Netflix

Samantha Bergeson
·3-min read

Richard Gadd is swapping deer for lions — and Netflix for HBO — with his latest series deal.

The “Baby Reindeer” creator/executive producer/star announced six-episode drama series “Lions” as a co-production between HBO and the BBC. The series will air in the U.S. on HBO and stream on Max.

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Gadd will serve as the creator, writer, and executive producer, with Alexandra Brodski and Eshref Reybrouck attached to direct. The official synopsis of the series reads: “When Niall’s estranged ‘brother’ Ruben shows up at his wedding, it leads to an explosion of violence that catapults us back through their lives. Spanning almost forty years from the 1980s to the present day, this ambitious series will cover the highs and lows of the brothers’ relationship, from them meeting as teenagers to their falling out as adults — with all the good, bad, terrible, funny, angry, and challenging moments along the way. It will capture the wild energy of a changing city — a changing world, even — and try to get to the bottom of the difficult question… What does it mean to be a man?”

No casting has been announced yet.

“Ordering a HBO boxset of ‘The Sopranos,’ ‘The Wire,’ or ‘Oz’ and watching it from start to finish were some of the happiest moments of my childhood. Since then, it has always been a dream of mine to work with HBO and be part of their iconic roster of shows,” Gadd said in a press statement. “I am so grateful to [HBO executives] Francesca Orsi, Kara Buckley, and Clint LaVigne for taking this chance on the show and on Ruben and Niall too who – despite growing up in a dead-end Scottish town – would be absolutely pinching themselves at this! I cannot wait to get started.”

While Gadd’s “Baby Reindeer” has been a smash-hit series for Netflix, it’s come with a headache. The streamer has been slapped with a $170 million lawsuit from the “real-life Martha,” Fiona Harvey.

Gadd also has been accused of manipulating his creative control to prey on potential love interests through “Baby Reindeer” casting. The series’ production company Clerkenwell Films investigated and cleared Gadd of wrongdoing after an actress claimed that Gadd implied she would receive a role if she dated him. Clerkenwell Films stated that Gadd did not have final say in casting decisions.

“Lions” is produced by Wendy Griffin and executive produced by Tally Garner and Morven Reid for Mam Tor Productions, Gadd, and Gaynor Holmes for the BBC, with Gavin Smith for BBC Scotland.

Kara Buckley, SVP of HBO’s drama programming, said, “We are tremendously excited to partner with the BBC and Richard Gadd, whose remarkable talent continues to make waves across the globe. With this new, gripping and evocative series, we are proud to welcome Richard to the HBO family.”

Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, said “Lions” has “bold, brilliant, one-of-a-kind storytelling,” while Louise Thornton, head of commissioning at BBC Scotland, shared that the series is “a superb example” of using the Scotland setting

“‘Lions’ is a superb example of how we can bring high quality storytelling and content rooted in Scotland to audiences across the UK and the world,” Thornton said. “We’re delighted to be working with our BBC colleagues, Screen Scotland and HBO to bring Richard’s truly innovative scripts to life.”

The series is made by Mam Tor Productions for HBO, BBC One, BBC Scotland and BBC iPlayer. Banijay Rights handles international distribution outside the UK and Ireland and the U.S. Lions is supported by Screen Scotland.

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