LETTERKENNY’S Huge Launch on CraveTV Fuels Second Season Order
? LETTERKENNY, CraveTV™’s first ever original series, the biggest series debut on CraveTV ever ?
? Production on Season 2 to begin this spring in Sudbury ?
? Production on Season 2 to begin this spring in Sudbury ?
TORONTO (March 10, 2016) – As announced moments ago on Twitter, CraveTV together with The Comedy Network, has ordered a second season of LETTERKENNY, CraveTV’s first ever original series which debuted on February 7. Produced by New Metric Media in partnership with DHX Media in association with Bell Media, a second season of the smash hit comedy series is set to shoot this spring in Sudbury. The announcement was confirmed by Mike Cosentino, Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks and CraveTV, at today’s Banff World Media Festival’s Content Industry Connect during Canadian Screen Week. Today’s announcement comes ahead of LETTERKENNY arriving on The Comedy Network schedule later this year.
As part of today’s announcement, CraveTV revealed that LETTERKENNY had the biggest debut of any series on CraveTV since the premium TV streaming service launched in 2014, with more CraveTV users watching LETTERKENNY than any other series or title on CraveTV. LETTERKENNY is based on the Internet sensation Letterkenny Problems, a series of shorts which have raked in more than 14 million views. Created by Jared Keeso of Bravo’s hit Canadian Screen Award-nominated original drama 19-2, LETTERKENNY is executive produced, directed, and co-written by Jacob Tierney (The Trotsky), who returns for Season 2.
“As CraveTV’s first original series, LETTERKENNY is already a point of pride, its success and resonance with viewers is just the icing on the Super Soft Birthday cake,” said Mike Cosentino, Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks and CraveTV. “A big congrats to Jared, the cast, crew, and our partners at New Metric Media. We look forward to working with you on another season of small-town shenanigans.”
“LETTERKENNY is right at home with the rest of our stand-out lineup,” said Tracey Pearce, Senior Vice-President, Specialty and Pay, Bell Media. “We are excited for Comedy’s viewers to check out the razor sharp and oh-so-Canadian first season, pumping them up for even more of this painfully funny series.”
“We are thrilled to get’er goin’ again with Bell Media, our partners at DHX, and the creative beauts of LETTERKENNY,” said Mark Montefiore, New Metric Media. “Patrick and I are glad that our investment in a matching pair of galoshes for Season 1 will pay off as we head back to the farm.”
Supported by a massive cross-platform promotional and publicity campaign, all six episodes of Season 1 of LETTERKENNY debuted on CraveTV Super Bowl Sunday (February 7) where the series became an instant hit. It finished the day #1 amongst all titles with more views per episode than any other series. The series has been #1 ever since, making LETTERKENNY the most successful title to ever launch on CraveTV. To date, already nearly one in three CraveTV users have watched LETTERKENNY.
With several custom SUPER BOWL on-air spots promoting the series, #LETTERKENNY trended on Twitter in Canada on Super Bowl Sunday, and delivered the most social reactions of any program on CraveTV’s Facebook page. Since the series announcement in November, views for all of the new digital content released on both the CraveTV and LETTERKENNY YouTube pages have totalled nearly 3 million.
Here’s what other critics have had to say about LETTERKENNY:
“The dialogue moves so fast it almost gives you whiplash.” – The Toronto Star
“Well, imagine if TRAILER PARK BOYS and the characters on CORNER GAS had some kids together.” – The Toronto Sun
“LETTERKENNY may be the most Canadian TV comedy ever made.” – The Canadian Press
“…a slice of homegrown comedy we haven’t seen since, well, ever.” – TV-eh?
“The dialogue crackles with freshness and goes down as smooth as a bottle of Bud Light.” – o.canada
“…it’s fast paced and laugh out loud hilarious.” – The Edge
LETTERKENNY, revolves around the dustups Wayne (Keeso) and his buds get into with their small-town Ontario rivals. There’s The Hicks, the Skids, and the Hockey Players, who get at each other about the most mundane things, often ending with someone getting their ass kicked.
LETTERKENNY is produced by New Metric Media (What Would Sal Do?), in partnership with DHX Media in association with Bell Media, with the participation of Canadian Media Fund, OMDC Tax Credits and the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund. Jacob Tierney (The Trotsky) is executive producer, director, and co-writer. Patrick O’Sullivan and Mark Montefiore (Cas & Dylan) are executive producers for New Metric Media. Sarah Fowlie is Director, Independent Production, Comedy, Bell Media. Executives for Bell Media are Kara Haflidson and Bill Lundy. Corrie Coe is Senior Vice-President, Independent Production, Bell Media. Tracey Pearce is Senior Vice-President, Specialty and Pay, Bell Media. Randy Lennox is President, Entertainment Production and Broadcasting, Bell Media.
About Bell Media Independent Production
Bell Media has commissioned some of Canada’s most-watched and most-acclaimed original programming, working with the best Canadian independent producers in the country. Hit series commissioned by CTV include ratings success stories SAVING HOPE, MOTIVE, the record-breaking THE AMAZING RACE CANADA, MASTERCHEF CANADA, and the upcoming drama CARDINAL. Among the original scripted series on Bell Media pay, specialty, and streaming platforms are the internationally acclaimed ORPHAN BLACK, the smash-hit thriller BITTEN, Space’s most-watched original series KILLJOYS, Bravo’s most-watched original drama 19-2, award-winning dramedy SENSITIVE SKIN, CraveTV’s first original series LETTERKENNY, and Discovery’s upcoming drama FRONTIER. Discovery is also home to Bell Media’s hit factual series HIGHWAY THRU HELL, COLD WATER COWBOYS, and CANADA’S WORST DRIVER, among others.
About New Metric Media
New Metric Media is a film, television, and new media production company that works with top creative talent to produce outstanding film, television, and new media content to entertain the world over. New Metric Media’s past and present projects include the upcoming series WHAT WOULD SAL DO? and the feature film Cas & Dylan, directed by Jason Priestley and starring Academy Award®-winner Richard Dreyfuss and Golden Globe®-nominee Tatiana Maslany. For more information visit www.newmetricmedia.com.
About DHX Media
DHX Media Ltd. (www.dhxmedia.com), a key player internationally in the creation of content for families and children, is recognized globally for such brands as YO GABBA GABBA!, CAILLOU, TELETUBBIES, IN THE NIGHT GARDEN, INSPECTOR GADGET, JOHNNY TEST, SLUGTERRA and the multiple award-winning DEGRASSI franchise. The Company is owner of the Family suite of channels, operated as DHX Television. DHX Media Ltd. markets and distributes its library of more than 11,500 half-hours of entertainment programming worldwide, and licenses its owned properties through its dedicated brand-management and consumer-products business, DHX Brands. DHX Media Ltd.’s full-service international licensing agency, Copyright Promotions Licensing Group Ltd. (CPLG), represents numerous entertainment, sport and design brands. With offices in 15 cities worldwide, including Toronto, Vancouver, Halifax, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Barcelona, Milan, Munich, Amsterdam and Beijing, DHX Media Ltd. is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol DHXM, and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbols DHX.A and DHX.B.
About CraveTV
Created for TV lovers and devoted to television, CraveTV is Canada’s premium TV streaming service, providing the most robust lineup of superior television content in the country. From TV’s most-acclaimed dramas and beloved comedies to documentaries, music, and factual programming, CraveTV features thousands of hours of premium non-kids TV programming, representing hundreds of unique titles including the entire off-air library of HBO’s iconic programming catalogue and hundreds of hours of acclaimed SHOWTIME series and specials. CraveTV is available directly to all Canadians with access to the Internet, as well as to customers of Eastlink, TELUS Optik TV, Bell Fibe TV, Bell Satellite TV, Bell Aliant FibreOP TV, Access Communications, Northwestel, SaskTel, Cable Cable, Hay Communications, Mitchell Seaforth Cable TV, Tuckersmith Communications, Wightman Telecom subscribers, NRTC Communications, WTC Communications, Tbaytel, Execulink Telecom, and VMedia. Available through traditional set-top boxes, mobile apps on iOS, Android, and Microsoft Windows 8.1, the web, Apple TV, Chromecast, and select Samsung Smart TVs, and CraveTV will soon be available via select game consoles. CraveTV is from Bell Media, Canada’s premier multi-media company with more than a decade of leadership delivering Canada’s most-watched and most-acclaimed television programming across the Pay, Specialty, Digital, and Network TV landscapes. For more on CraveTV, visit www.CraveTV.ca.
About The Comedy Network
Canada’s first specialty comedy service, The Comedy Network airs comedy of all kinds, 24-hours-a-day, across multiple platforms, including a revolutionary broadband service at thecomedynetwork.ca. Launched in October 1997, Comedy broadcasts, uncut and uncensored, an eclectic mix of scripted, stand-up, sketch, improv, and animated comedy – as well as topical comedy talk shows, game shows and classic situation comedies. Offering an unrivalled slate of original Canadian programming, Comedy reinvests nearly 50 per cent of its revenues into home-grown productions. Comedy is a division of Bell Media, which is owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada’s largest communications company, and is available in nearly six million households across the country.
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