Viacom-Owned Channel 5 Picks Up UK Rights To Sony’s Crackle Gang Drama ‘The Oath’

Viacom-owned British broadcaster Channel 5 has picked up the UK rights to Sony Pictures Television’s Crackle drama The Oath.

The network will launch the 50 Cent-exec produced drama on its digital service My5 as part of a strategy of bolstering the VOD platform with first-run exclusives.

The Oath, which has been renewed for a second season by Crackle, was created by Joe Halpin (Hawaii Five-0) and explores a world of gangs made up of those sworn to protect and defend. It sheds light on corrupt and secret societies that are nearly impossible to join—only a select few make the cut—but once inside, members will do what they must to protect each other from enemies on the outside and from within their own ranks.

It stars Sean Bean, Ryan Kwanten, also a producer, Cory Hardrict, Katrina Law, Arlen Escarpeta and J.J. Soria. Rounding out the ensemble cast are: Elisabeth Röhm, Michael Malarkey, Eve Mauro, Kwame Patterson and Linda Purl.

The Oath is executive produced by Curtis Jackson and his G-Unit Film & Television Inc., Dennis Kim, Todd Hoffman, Anne Clements, and Halpin who also serves as showrunner.

It comes after My5 bought Sony Pictures Television’s Australian drama Bloom, a six-part mystery drama starring Bryan Brown and Jacki Weaver. The series is produced by Sony’s Playmaker Media for digital platform Stan.

Both shows will air later this spring.

James Tatam, VP of Commercial, Digital & Operations, Channel 5 said, “We know that high quality drama drives VOD viewing and loyalty so it’s an important part of our acquisitions strategy as we scale up the platform. With a diverse range of content from the Channel 5 pipeline and our strong selection of content from third-party partners, there’s something for everyone to enjoy on the platform.”