Russia to make local version of The Office
- Published: 24 July 2008 09:10
- Author: Greg Brooks
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- Last Updated: 28 July 2008 09:21
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Ricky Gervais has revealed that award-winning comedy The Office is to be remade for a Russian audience.
The deal has been secured by distributor BBC Worldwide, and is the sixth adaptation of the show. The deal with leading Russian producer Red Square is for a 24 x 30-minute series which will air on Channel One and be simulcast on the internet.
Gervais said: "With a population of 150 million people I am expecting good ratings that will eventually translate into serious Roubles."
Local versions have already been produced for NBC in the US, Canal+ in France and French-Canadian broadcaster SRC. A Chilean version, titled La Ofis, has recently been produced.
Production is yet to start on the project, which is understood to be set in a former KGB office. The deal was brokered by Ben Donald, BBCW's head of sales for Russia and northern Mediterranean.
Under the editorial supervision of BBC Worldwide's Executive Producer Duncan Cooper, the broadcaster has the rights to develop new story lines around the local Office characters, beyond the original 13 scripts, in order to make a longer running series.
Donald said: "This is the first scripted format we have licensed to Russia and marks another breakthrough for our business in the country.
"Russia is an important territory for us; we've had much success with other formats such as Dancing with the Stars, Junior Mastermind and most recently Great Russians which is currently causing huge debate in the media.
"We are obviously very eager to hear about the cast members, including who will be the David Brentski of Russia, and the location of their 'Slough'."
