The producers of mini-series The Kennedys will create a one-hour drama series for Reelzchannel to debut late next year or 2013, the movie-related network said.
Reelzchannel picked up eight-episode The Kennedys after History, its original network home, dropped it due to objections about the accuracy of the biopic. The controversy helped Reelzchannel draw a record audience of 1.9 million viewers though it tailed off after the early nights in April.
Reelzchannel and Asylum Entertainment, with 24 and The Kennedys executive producer Joel Surnow as consulting executive, expect to have a series ready to debut on the network in 2013 or as early as late next year and will "explore, develop and produce multiple scripted and unscripted projects together," the network said. Asylum Entertainment is led by president and chief creative officer Jonathan Koch.
Network CEO Stan E. Hubbard said in a release: "As the Reelzchannel brand evolves for the future, Asylum and Joel Surnow are the partners we want at our side."
"Following the tremendously successful run of The Kennedys Stan Hubbard and his team are clearly committed to solidifying Reelzchannel as a force in the cable programming world. We're privileged to be spearheading part of that directive for him," Koch said.
Surnow said: "In acquiring The Kennedys, Reelzchannel made a statement to the community that the network is a destination for superior programming. When Stan Hubbard approached Jonathan Koch and me with the idea of continuing to build on the foundation of the network with high quality programs, we couldn't sign up quickly enough. Being a part of this impressive team is an honor, a privilege and a pleasure."
