Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentFremantle and Webtoon Studios, which is the entertainment arm of user-generated fiction and comics entertainment outfits Wattpad and Webtoon, have announced a new partnership that will see them co-develop a slate of European film and TV projects.These will be adapted from successful Spanish, Italian, and English language stories with built-in global fandoms on Wattpad and Webtoon, they said in a statement.Under the deal Fremantle, the production and distribution powerhouse owned by Germany’s RTL Group, and Webtoon Studios will be co-producing the content for worldwide distribution.The non-exclusive partnership will give Fremantle access to Webtoon Studios IPs spanning a wide range of genres, and also to their data-backed insights into what fans love about them.
The two companies said they will be working with the original Wattpad authors to develop local and regional hits with global appeal in Spanish, Italian, and English-speaking countries.Fremantle has a robust European drama slate comprising Luca Guadagnino’s coming of age drama series “We Are Who We Are” and Tobias Lindholm-directed “The Investigation” and Paolo Sorrentino’s Oscar-nominated film “The Hand of God,” to name a few.
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