LOS ANGELES and TOKYO - Feb. 13, 2017 - CBS Studios International announced today a multi-title content licensing agreement with Japan's leading premium pay TV provider, WOWOW. The agreement includes the first-window broadcast rights to the highly anticipated new TWIN PEAKS, the #1 new U.S. drama BULL, starring Michael Weatherly and the murder-mystery series AMERICAN GOTHIC.
BULL, TWIN PEAKS and AMERICAN GOTHIC will be shown on WOWOW's Prime channel, joining other SHOWTIME and CBS programming including the critically-acclaimed THE AFFAIR, the event series ZOO and the modern-day Sherlock and Holmes drama, ELEMENTARY.
"The series in this agreement represent the strength and variety of CBS and SHOWTIME programming available to broadcasters around the world," said Barry Chamberlain, President of Sales, CBS Studios International. "We are thrilled to have expanded our portfolio of programming with WOWOW, bringing more of our compelling and creative storytelling to audiences across Japan."
Hitoshi Yamamoto, General Manager, Programming Division at WOWOW said, "For the millions of WOWOW subscribers who have been watching the company's programming since its launch 25 years ago, the new TWIN PEAKS will reignite great memories of the original TWIN PEAKS series that was part of WOWOW's original lineup and helped audiences identify WOWOW as a destination for the highest quality entertainment, due to its tremendous popularity. We know that the latest iteration of TWIN PEAKS will captivate and delight an even larger WOWOW audience today, and are delighted to expand a great partnership with CBS Studios International, whose American television series are amongst the most popular and highly regarded in the world."
Directed entirely by David Lynch, TWIN PEAKS, the new SHOWTIME 18-part series, picks up twenty-five years after the inhabitants of a quaint northwestern town were stunned when their homecoming queen Laura Palmer was shockingly murdered.
TWIN PEAKS is written and executive produced by series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost, and is executive produced by Sabrina S. Sutherland.
BULL, the #1 new program of the season in the U.S., is averaging 16.0m million viewers, 2.3/08 in adults 18-49 and 3.4/10 in adults 25-54. With live plus 7-day lift, BULL's premiere delivered 20.5 million viewers. BULL is the #2 broadcast drama (behind NCIS).
The new series stars Michael Weatherly as Dr. Jason Bull in a drama inspired by the early career of Dr. Phil McGraw, the founder of one of the most prolific trial consulting firms of all time. Brilliant, brash and charming, Dr. Bull is the ultimate puppet master as he combines psychology, human intuition and high tech data to learn what makes jurors, attorneys, witnesses and the accused tick. Bull employs an enviable team of experts at Trial Analysis Corporation to shape successful narratives down to the very last detail. They include his quick-witted former brother-in-law, Benny Colón (Freddy Rodriguez), a lawyer who acts as defence attorney in the company's mock trials; Marissa Morgan (Geneva Carr), a cutting-edge neurolinguistics expert from the Department of Homeland Security; former NYPD detective Danny James (Jaime Lee Kirchner), the firm's tough but relatable investigator; haughty millennial hacker Cable McCrory (Annabelle Attanasio), who is responsible for gathering cyber intelligence; and Chunk Palmer (Chris Jackson), a fashion-conscious stylist and former All-American lineman who fine tunes clients' appearances for trial. In high-stakes trials, Bull's combination of remarkable insight into human nature, three Ph.D.'s and a top-notch staff creates winning strategies that tip the scales of justice in his clients' favor.
BULL is produced by CBS Television Studios in association with Amblin Television and Stage 29 Productions and is distributed internationally by CBS Studios International, with Mark Goffman, Paul Attanasio, Dr. Phil McGraw, Steven Spielberg, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Jay McGraw and Rodrigo Garcia (pilot only) serving as executive producers.
AMERICAN GOTHIC centers on a prominent Boston family reeling in the wake of the chilling discovery that someone in their midst is linked to an infamous string of murders. As shocking secrets from the past and present are revealed, their mounting suspicion and paranoia that one of them is a killer threatens to tear the family apart.
AMERICAN GOTHIC is executive produced by Corinne Brinkerhoff, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, James Frey and Todd Cohen, produced by CBS Television Studios and distributed internationally by CBS Studios International.
About CBS Studios International
CBS Studios International is the leading supplier of programming to the international television marketplace, licensing to more than 200 markets in more than 60 languages across multiple media platforms. The Studio participates in international channel ventures, currently comprised of 18 channels in 24 languages across over 100 territories, reaching more than 70 million households worldwide. CBS Studios International also exports a diverse lineup of formats for local production around the world. The division distributes content from CBS Television Studios, CBS Television Distribution, Showtime, CBS News, CBS Films and a library of more than 70,000 hours of programming. CBS Studios International is a division of CBS Corporation.