A Shocking Unsolved Murder Puts A Small Town Under Scrutiny In FOX's New Event Series "Broadchurch" (working title)

Set in an American town, BROADCHURCH (wt) follows the tragic and mysterious death of a young boy found dead on an idyllic beach surrounded by rocks and a jutting cliff-face, from where he may have fallen. Although the cause of his death remains unsolved, the picturesque seaside town where the tragedy occurred is at the heart of a major police investigation and a nationwide media frenzy.

Chibnall will write the pilot episode and executive-produce the series with Shine America’s Carolyn Bernstein (“The Bridge”) and Jane Featherstone (“The Hour,” “Utopia”) from drama producers Kudos.  The series will be distributed by Shine International.

Broadcast on the U.K.’s ITV earlier this year, “Broadchurch,” Chibnall's powerfully dark and thought-provoking drama starring David Tennant and Olivia Colman, took the U.K. by storm. Immediately garnering critical acclaim, the series built into a cultural phenomenon, and drew more than 10 million viewers for its season finale.

“BROADCHURCH [wt] is the kind of storytelling that grabs your attention and keeps you riveted with every minute – which is exactly what we look for in an event series,” said Kevin Reilly, Chairman of Entertainment, Fox Broadcasting Company. “We love the layered characters, we’ve seen how well-received it’s been in the U.K., and we’re lucky to be able to bring a new version of this mystery to the U.S. audience.”

“We are thrilled that this compelling series from creator Chris Chibnall and our sister company Kudos is going to be adapted for the American TV audience,” said Rich Ross, CEO, Shine America. “And FOX is the perfect partner to help make BROADCHURCH (wt) an event here in the U.S. as it was earlier this year for millions of British viewers.”

Jane Featherstone, Chief Executive, Kudos, added: “I am delighted to be working with Chris and everybody to bring BROADCHURCH’s (wt) unique voice and vision to a new coastline, community and culture.”

As part of its event series programming slate, FOX has two exciting, large-scale drama projects scheduled to go into production for air in 2014. 24: LIVE ANOTHER DAY, produced by Teakwood Lane Productions in association with 20^th Century Fox Television and Imagine Television, will restart the clock on the groundbreaking and Emmy Award-winning drama franchise starring Kiefer Sutherland, once again following the exploits of heroic agent JACK BAUER (Sutherland), who will resume his story several years following the events of the final season. WAYWARD PINES, an intense, mind-bending thriller from executive producers M. Night Shyamalan (“The Sixth Sense,” “Unbreakable”), Chad Hodge (“The Playboy Club”), Donald De Line (“Green Lantern,” “The Italian Job”), Ashwin Rajan (“After Earth”) and FX Productions, and starring Matt Dillon, Melissa Leo, Carla Gugino, Toby Jones and Terrence Howard, centers on Secret Service agent ETHAN BURKE (Dillon) who arrives in the bucolic town of Wayward Pines, ID, on a mission to find two missing federal agents. But instead of answers, Ethan’s investigation only turns up more questions.

In addition, previously announced projects included in the network’s marquee development slate include the FX Productions projects SHŌGUN, from Academy Award-nominated producer Michael De Luca (“The Social Network,” “Moneyball”), Michaela Clavell and Nigel Williams (“Elizabeth I”); and THE RUN OF HIS LIFE: THE PEOPLE V. O.J. SIMPSON (working title), from Nina Jacobson (“The Hunger Games” franchise, “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” franchise) and Brad Simpson (“World War Z,” “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” franchise), based on legal journalist Jeffrey Toobin’s best-selling book of the same name.