Ten-Episode Series Helmed by Award-Winning
Showrunners Ed Zwick
& Marshall Herskovitz, With
Zwick Directing the First Episode
Based on Memoir by Combat Veteran Stephen
McAllister
LOS ANGELES and SANTA MONICA, Calif., Feb. 8, 2017 /CNW/ -- Discovery Channel and
Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF.B) today announced a series commitment
on the original scripted project, The Suck, to air in
2018.
Based on an unpublished memoir by Vietnam veteran and former Greenpeace
International executive Stephen
McCallister, by turns funny, terrifying and tragic, the
10-episode series presents a unique and unexpected view of the
American experience in the Vietnam War. At the same time, it
dramatizes the story of the Vietnamese in a way not previously
explored in television.
The Suck, which is produced by Lionsgate to air on
Discovery Channel, will be helmed by Ed
Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz
(Nashville, the creators of
thirtysomething). Zwick, who previously directed the Academy
Award® winning films Glory and Legends of the Fall,
will direct the first episode.
"We are so lucky that Ed and Marshall, who have created so many
indelible characters and unforgettable stories, are now taking
Discovery viewers on a new journey. It's great that we get to
partner with the Lionsgate team to bring it all to life," said
Rich Ross, Group President of
Discovery, Animal Planet, Science Channel and Velocity.
"This series brings together an incredible property, the
brilliant creative team of Ed Zwick
and Marshall Herskovitz and the
perfect partner in our friends at Discovery," said Lionsgate
Television Group Chairman Kevin
Beggs. "Ed and Marshall have done a remarkable job of
shepherding the success of Nashville this season, and we're proud to
bring their singular talents to the television portrayal of
Stephen McAllister's unconventional
Vietnam memoir. We're also
delighted to continue growing our relationship with Discovery on
this high-end premium scripted series that we expect to resonate
with their viewers for years to come."
The series is the latest example of Discovery's expanded
relationship with Lionsgate. Discovery and Lionsgate are also
collaborating on "Manhunt: The UNABOMer" anthology scripted
series starring Sam Worthington and
Paul Bettany, now in production.
Discovery and Liberty Global invested in Lionsgate in November 2015.
Stephen McAllister entered the US
Army in August 1968 and was trained
as an infantry point man and scout dog handler. He served in
Vietnam with the 25th Division at
Cu Chi and was released from the Army in July 1970. After the war, McAllister attended
college majoring in Civil Engineering and Environmental Studies. In
1981, he joined the crew of the Greenpeace vessel named the Rainbow
Warrior. He advanced to various leadership positions in Greenpeace,
including Co-Director/Campaign Director for Greenpeace USA, Executive Director of Greenpeace
Australia and Deputy Executive Director/Campaign Director of
Greenpeace International. After leaving Greenpeace in 1991, he
pursued a business career in the Washington D.C. area, from which he recently
retired. McAllister is currently on the Board of Directors of
Oceana, an ocean advocacy group, with Keith
Addis.
Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz have created some of
television's most critically acclaimed and memorable series,
including the Emmy Award®-winning thirtysomething, My
So-Called Life, Relativity and the Emmy®- and Golden
Globe®-winning Once and Again. They are currently
Executive Producers on the hit series Nashville. Their
longtime collaboration began on the Emmy®-winning TV movie
Special Bulletin, which led to the formation of the Bedford
Falls Company, their home for film and television projects. Among
the partners' feature film producing credits are Legends of the
Fall, The Last Samurai and Blood Diamond, all of
which were directed by Zwick; the Oscar®-nominated film I Am
Sam; as well as Traffic, which won two Golden Globes®
and four Academy Awards®.
Zwick, who won an Academy Award® as a producer of
Shakespeare in Love, also
directed the Oscar®-winning film Glory, Courage Under
Fire, The Siege, Defiance and Love & Other
Drugs, and most recently directed Jack Reacher: Never Go
Back. Herskovitz directed Jack the Bear and the cult
favorite Dangerous Beauty, and in 2007, created the
groundbreaking online series and social network quarterlife,
which at the time was the Internet's most successful scripted
series.
Keith Addis is the co-founder of
Addis/Wechsler, which evolved into Industry Entertainment Partners
in 1997. The company was one of the first entertainment firms to
combine talent management with film and television production.
Industry's producing credits include The Player
(Golden Globe®, Best Picture), Quills (two Academy Award®
nominations) and Requiem for a Dream (two Academy Award®
nominations). Addis currently manages the careers of clients,
including Ted Danson, Sam Waterston, Dylan
McDermott, Jeff Goldblum and
producer/Director Michael Uppendahl.
Over the years, Addis has guided the careers of major stars,
including Ray Liotta, Whoopi
Goldberg and Mad Men creator Matthew
Weiner. Addis began his career at ICM in 1974, worked on
Taxi Driver as an assistant to Martin Scorsese and producer Michael Phillips in 1975, became a partner in
the Robert Littman/Keith Addis
talent agency from 1976 to 1980, and then launched his career as a
personal manager in 1980. His friendship with McAllister and
familiarity with the material as the memoir has taken shape dates
back 15 years, as the two have both served on the Board of
Directors of Oceana.
Anthony D. ("Tony") Thomopoulos spent 12 years of his career at
ABC, moving progressively from Vice President of Prime Time
Programs, to President of ABC Entertainment, to President of ABC
Broadcast Group. In 1986, he became Chairman of United
Artists Pictures and later formed Thomopoulos Productions, an
independent production company that produced Striking
Distance. From 1991 to early 1995, Thomopoulos was
President of Amblin Television, after which he joined International
Family Entertainment, Inc. (IFE) to oversee programming for The
Family Channel. He was subsequently named CEO of MTM Entertainment,
a subsidiary of IFE. He then became Chairman and CEO of Media Arts
Group in 2001. In 2005, he was appointed by Governor
Schwarzenegger to serve as a state commissioner of the California
Service Corps for three terms. Today, Thomopoulos remains
founder and partner in Morning Light Productions, as well as
Thomopoulos Productions. In addition, he currently serves on
several board of directors, including SNT Media.
About Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is dedicated
to creating the highest quality non-fiction content that informs
and entertains its consumers about the world in all its wonder,
diversity and amazement. The network, which is distributed to 100.8
million U.S. homes, can be seen in 224 countries and territories,
offering a signature mix of compelling, high-end production values
and vivid cinematography across genres including, science and
technology, exploration, adventure, history and in-depth,
behind-the-scenes glimpses at the people, places and organizations
that shape and share our world. For more information, please
visit www.discovery.com
About Discovery Communications
Discovery
Communications (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) is the world's #1
pay-TV programmer reaching nearly 3 billion cumulative subscribers
in more than 220 countries and territories. For 30 years Discovery
has been dedicated to satisfying curiosity and entertaining viewers
with high-quality content through its global television brands, led
by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Investigation Discovery
and Science, as well as U.S. joint venture network OWN: Oprah
Winfrey Network. Discovery controls Eurosport, the leading
pan-regional sports entertainment destination across Europe, Asia
Pacific, the Middle East
and Africa. Discovery also is a
leading provider of educational products and services to schools,
including an award-winning series of K-12 digital textbooks,
through Discovery Education, and a digital leader with a
diversified online portfolio, including Discovery Digital Networks.
For more information, please
visit www.discoverycommunications.com.
About Lionsgate
Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF.B) is a
vertically integrated next generation global content leader with a
diversified presence in motion picture production and distribution,
television programming and syndication, premium pay television
networks, home entertainment, global distribution and sales,
interactive ventures and games and location-based
entertainment.
With the acquisition of Starz, Lionsgate adds to its portfolio
of businesses the flagship STARZ premium pay network serving 24.3
million subscribers and the STARZ ENCORE platform
with 31 million subscribers. The combined company will operate five
over-the-top (OTT) streaming services and the STARZ app delivering
content directly to consumers.
The Company's feature film business spans eight labels and
includes the blockbuster Hunger Games franchise,
the Now You See Me and John Wick series, the
critically-acclaimed box office hit La
La Land, which earned a record-tying 14 Academy
Award® nominations, Hacksaw Ridge, Tyler Perry's Boo! A Madea Halloween, CBS Films/Lionsgate's Hell
or High Water, Roadside Attractions' Manchester by the Sea, Codeblack
Films' breakout concert film Kevin
Hart: Let Me Explain and Pantelion
Films' Instructions Not Included, the highest-grossing
Spanish-language film ever released in the U.S.
One of the largest independent television businesses in the
world, Lionsgate's slate of premium quality series encompasses
nearly 90 shows on more than 40 different networks. These include
the ground-breaking Orange is the New Black, the fan
favorite Nashville,
the syndication success The Wendy Williams Show, the
hit drama The Royals, the acclaimed
Casual, the breakout
success Greenleaf and hit Starz series
including Outlander, Black
Sails, Survivor's Remorse and Power,
the second highest-rated premium pay television series of 2016.
Lionsgate's home entertainment business is an industry leader in
box office-to-DVD and box office-to-VOD revenue conversion rates.
Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of more than
16,000 motion picture and television titles that is an important
source of recurring revenue and serves as a foundation for the
growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate, Summit
Entertainment and Starz brands are synonymous with original,
daring, quality entertainment in markets around the
world. www.lionsgate.com
Press Contacts for Discovery:
Laurie Goldberg, laurie_goldberg@discovery.com,
310-975-1631
Phil
Zimmerman, phil_zimmerman@discovery.com, 310-975-5975
Press Contact for Lionsgate:
David Gardner, dgardner@lippingroup.com,
323-801-7449
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SOURCE Lionsgate