“Derek,” the latest series from award winning comedian and actor Ricky Gervais will be coming exclusively next year to Netflix in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Scandinavia. The series will be available to Netflix members in the UK and Ireland following its debut on Channel 4 there.
‘Derek’, written and directed by and starring Gervais, is a bitter-sweet comedy about a group of outsiders living on society’s margins. It also stars Karl Pilkington, (the reluctant explorer in Gervais’ other brainchild ‘An Idiot Abroad’), in his first acting role.
The series was commissioned in the UK by Channel 4 in April, after a one-off special drew the highest rating for a scripted comedy in nearly two years. It will come to Netflix in the United States and other Netflix territories in 2013.
Gervais commented, ‘Netflix is the future. TV habits have already changed drastically over the last 10 years and this is the next phase. People want their favourite shows on demand whether they are homegrown or not. As an artist you want the fruits of you labour to be seen by the largest number of people possible without having to compromise the product. This deal gave me the freedom and the huge potential viewers of the internet but the production values of film and TV. They also made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. Come on, an artist gotta eat man’.”
Said Netflix Chief Content officer Ted Sarandos: “We are thrilled to be working again with Ricky. We were the first online subscription service to license “The Office” several years ago and this brings us full circle.”
Gervais has a history of making award-winning television. Creating and starring in ‘The Office’ and ‘Extras’, he has won three Golden Globes, two Primetime Emmys, and seven BAFTAS. ‘The Office’ is the most successful British comedy of all time, shown in more than 90 countries with seven remakes.
In 2010, Gervais was asked to be the first host of the ‘Golden Globes’ since 1995, for a broadcast seen by an estimated audience of 250 million. He was named in ‘Time’ magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World and awarded the ‘Sir Peter Ustinov Comedy Award’ from the Banff World Television Festival. Ricky has since hosted the ‘Golden Globes’ in 2011 and 2012. The third season of ‘The Ricky Gervais Show’ aired earlier this year on HBO and ‘An Idiot Abroad 3: The Short Way Round’ is due for release in 2013.
DEREK Productions is an Independent Production Company represented by United Agents.
About Netflix:
With more than 27 million streaming members in the United States, Canada, Latin America, the United Kingdom and Ireland, Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) is the world’s leading internet subscription service for enjoying movies and TV programs. For one low monthly price, Netflix members can instantly watch movies and TV programs streamed over the internet to PCs, Macs and TVs. Among the large and expanding base of devices streaming from Netflix are the Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Sony PS3 consoles; an array of Blu-ray disc players, internet-connected TVs, home theatre systems, digital video recorders and internet video players; Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, as well as Apple TV and Google TV. In all, more than 800 devices that stream from Netflix are available. For additional information, visit www.netflix.com. Follow Netflix on Facebook and Twitter.
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