Great Scott!
Prolific director Ridley Scott and his shingle Scott Free Productions have inked a first-look television deal with Apple, Variety has learned. Competition for the company’s signature was pretty competitive, according to sources.
Under the multi-year deal, Scott Free will develop global TV projects for Apple TV Plus, with Scott, David Zucker, Clayton Krueger and Jordan Sheehan acting as executive producers on those projects.
Scott Free, which Scott founded in 1995, has produced quite the list of successful films and TV series over the years, from “Top Gun” and “The Martian” on the film front, to “The Good Wife,” “Man in the High Castle” and “The Terror” on the TV side of things. In its 25 year history, the company has earned over 100 Emmy nominations with 22 wins, and 28 Golden Globe nominations for its TV projects.
Next up on Scott’s packed directing schedule is Disney’s “The Last Duel.” The period drama, which stars Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer and Ben Affleck, is slated to premiere on Dec. 25, however, production on the picture was halted by the coronavirus pandemic and it is still unclear whether or not that will affect Disney’s anticipated timeline.
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Scott, who of course helmed Apple’s famous “1984” commercial, is set to make his TV directorial debut on the HBO Max series “Raised by Wolves,”and will serve as an EP on FX’s series adaptation of Don Winslow’s “Cartel” trilogy of novels.
Scott Free Productions is represented by WME.
To date, Apple has also inked deals with studios A24 and Imagine Documentaries, Sesame Workshop, and Peanuts. On the individual front, the list of creatives under overalls at Apple includes Alfonso Cuaron, Annie Weisman, Jason Katims, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Justin Lin, Lee Eisenberg, Monica Beletsky, Oprah Winfrey, Sharon Horgan, and Simon Kinberg. “Dickinson” showrunner Alena Smith inked an overall deal with the streamer exactly a week ago, following the news that Kerry Ehrin, the “The Morning Show” showrunner, had extended hers.
