It took awhile, but Fox finally has given a formal pilot green light to a one-hour drama based on the Endemol Shine Australia series Sisters. The untitled project (fka Sisters), which had a put pilot commitment, hails from The Path duo of co-executive producer Annie Weisman and executive producer Jason Katims, as well as the original series’ co-creator Imogen Banks, Universal TV and Endemol Shine North America.
Leslye Headland has been tapped to direct the pilot, written by Weisman. It was one of the hottest drama scripts at Fox, emerging as an early front-runner, but was the last to get a pilot order as it took some time for Fox and Uni TV to hammer out a co-production deal per the network’s new business model as an independent.
Based on the Australian series created by Jonathan Gavin and Banks, the drama centers on Julia Bechly, an only child who finds her life turned upside down when her father is forced to reveal that over the course of his pioneering career as a fertility doctor, he used his own sperm to conceive dozens of children. As she dutifully begins to track down her emerging group of siblings, among a sea of brothers, Julia discovers only two sisters – both of whom quickly become a part of her now redefined family.
Weisman executive produces with Headland, True Jack’s Katims and Jeni Mulein, Banks and Endemol Shine North America president Sharon Levy. Universal produces in association with Endemol Shine North America. The project was developed and sold while True Jack was based at Uni TV (the company since has moved to Apple). Weisman is under an overall deal at Uni TV.
Australian series Sisters, starring Maria Angelico as Julia Bechly, premiered its seven-episode first season on Network Ten in October 2017 and launched as a Netflix Original Series on September 1, 2018.
In the U.S., a retired Indiana fertility doctor made headlines in 2016 when he was sued for using his own sperm around 50 times on unwitting female patients he was treating. He avoided jail time but recently surrendered his medical license.
Weisman began her career as a writer-producer on Seasons 7 and 8 of ABC’s Desperate Housewives. She most recently served as a co-executive producer-writer on Hulu’s The Path and as a consulting producer-writer on NBC’s I Feel Bad under her Uni TV deal. Weisman is repped by WME and attorney Kevin Kelly of Gendler & Kelly.
Katims’ True Jack most recently produced the NBC drama series Rise and The Path on Hulu. He is repped by CAA and attorney Ira Schreck.
Endemol Shine North America has upcoming drama series Utopia at Amazon, based on the UK format.
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