Sky Atlantic Dates ‘Tin Star’ S2; A+E Networks Hires Int’l Scripted Exec; BIFAs To Fete Judi Dench – Global Briefs

British pay-TV giant Sky has dated the second season of Tim Roth-fronted drama Tin Star. Sky Atlantic will launch the forthcoming run of the Kudos-produced series on January 24, 2019. The second season of the show, which also aired on Amazon in the U.S., comes after Roth’s Police Chief Jim Worth and his family were left destroyed by the chaos of season one. It picks up with the anarchic and unlikely hero, cut off in the remote Rockies wilderness with his grieving and shell-shocked family struggling to come to terms with their ordeal. Seeking refuge from her own parents, his daughter Anna, played by Abigail Lawrie, is taken in by the God-fearing Nickel family. However, the peaceful prairie family are harboring secrets of their own and it’s not long before Anna is forced to seek her father’s help.

A+E Networks International is ramping up its moves into international drama co-productions with the hire of Sky Vision exec Moreyba Bidessie. She joins as Director of Scripted Development and Sales, reporting to Richard Tulk-Hart, Managing Director, International Content Sales & Co-productions, A+E Networks. Based in London, Bidessie is charged with developing the scripted acquisitions strategy to complement the current slate of original scripted projects from A+E Studios with new international co-productions. She was previously Scripted Acquisitions Manager at Sky Vision and Global Acquisition Executive at Fox International Channels. “Moreyba Bidessie is a talented acquisitions executive whose wealth of experience in effectively sourcing and developing scripted projects for commercial success across the international marketplace will play a significant role in our continued growth in the scripted co-production space,” said Tulk-Hart.

Judi Dench is to be feted at the British Independent Film Awards. The Philomena and Spectre star will receive the Richard Harris Award for Outstanding Contribution at the event on December 2 in London. Previous recipients of the award include Daniel Day-Lewis, Bob Hoskins and Vanessa Redgrave. Harris’ son Jared Harris said, “Dame Judi has stolen every scene she has ever been in, and stolen our hearts along the way. Although she hates being called a national treasure and prefers to be thought of as a jobbing actor, she is undeniably both the standard bearer and the gold standard for British actors.” Dench added, “It has been my absolute privilege to spend almost 60 years working in the British film industry, one of the most vibrant and creative homes for filmmakers in the world. To be recognized with this award, which bears the name of the great Richard Harris and counts some of my favorite actors and actresses amongst its past recipients is a source of deep pride and a very special honor.”