Represented Globally by Banijay Rights, Ovation Licenses Season 3 of Versailles for Linear Network, VOD and its TV Everywhere App, Ovation NOW
NATPE: Fresh off the success of its Season 2 premiere, Ovation, America’s only arts network, has licensed Season 3 of the hit international series Versailles (10 x 60’) from Banijay Rights, the international distribution arm of Banijay Group. The new season will have its U.S. linear and digital premieres on Ovation TV, on VOD, and Ovation NOW in the fall of 2018. The announcement was made today by Scott Woodward, EVP, Programming, Ovation.
Versailles season 3 is a CANAL+ Création Originale series, produced by Capa Drama, Banijay Studios France, Entre Chien et Loup. This landmark Anglo-French drama takes the period genre to new dimensions, focusing on the art and culture, greed and deception, sex and politics, and duplicity and murder that all collided in the court of Louis XIV. Since its debut on Ovation in the fall of 2016, the series has been a remarkable success for the network, both on air and across its social networks. Season 2, which concluded last month, exceeded the stellar ratings of Season 1 by +11% with adults 25–54, and +13% in total viewers. On social media, fan engagement continued to grow throughout the season, and doubled during the final episode. The Los Angeles Times named Versailles Season 2 one of the Top Ten shows of 2017.
“Versailles has been a stunning success for Ovation since the Season One premiere,” said Woodward. “Season Two exceeded our expectations, surging past the network’s benchmarks for original premieres. Particularly thrilling for us was the marked uptick across all our social media platforms and interest in our original behind-the-scenes and documentary content about Versailles. It had the ‘tide raises all ships’ effect and we certainly are eager to ride the wave into 2018 with Season Three.”
At the end of the last season, we saw King Louis’ empire, as well as his sanity, dissolve into chaos. In Season 3, he resolves to regain control of his own life, his precious Versailles, and France itself. But rebellion is in the air and new challenges are brewing inside Versailles, as well as outside. Emboldened by his new favorite Madame de Maintenon, he won’t relent in his quest for absolute power, convinced of his own divine powers.
Season 3 of Versailles is executive produced by Claude Chelli and Aude Albano and directed by Richard Clark, Edward Bazalgette, and Pieter Van Hees. George Blagden (Vikings) returns as Louis XIV, Alexander Vlahos (Merlin) as Prince Philippe, Catherine Walker as Madame de Maintenon and Elisa Lasowski as Queen Marie Thérèse.