Complete Coverage: Upfronts 2013
UPDATED: 7:00 p.m. ET
Looking to pump its millienial-skewing broadcast network
UniMas, Univision will adapt the former CW series Gossip Girl.
Univision, which said it plans to produce more content than
ever for the recentlyrebranded network, has slated four new series for 2013-14, highlighted by the Gossip Girl adaptation, Gossip Girl Acapulco. The adaptation shifts the series to Acapulco,
following the lives of privileged youths in the Mexican resort town. It will
air simultaneously in the U.S.
and in Mexico,
the first drama to do so.
UniMas also has La Seleccion,
about the 1994 Columbian World Cup team; La
Viuda Negra (The Black Widow),
based on the true story of Griselda Blanco, known as "the Cocaine
Grandmother"; and La Madame,
starring former Miss Universe Alicia Machado.
Those join the returning/previously announced Clorofomo, Diablo Guardian (Guardian Devil) and the comedy Los Heroes del Norte 3 (Heroes of the North 3).
Univision also slated two new telenovelas for its main
Univision broadcast network, with both featuring multiplatform elements.
Televisa's La Tempestad
(The Storm) will feature parallel
storylines across television, digital and social media. The other telenovela, Mentir para Vivir, will feature
behind-the-scenes content on UVideos and other social media platforms.
Univision's Deportes Network is
also looking to ramp up its sports footprint, saying it will broadcast more live
soccer than any other sports network, regardless of language. This summer, in
what Univision is calling 90 Dias de Delirio
(90 Days of Madness), Univision
Deportes will air over 100 games, and more than 3,000 hours of live soccer over
a period of 90 days. Those include matches from Liga MX, the FIFA
Confederations Cup, the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the FIFA U-20 World Cup, World Cup
Qualifiers, friendly matches featuring the U.S.,
Mexican and German National Teams and Major League Soccer matches including the
MLS All-Star Game.
Next summer, Univision will air its final World Cup as the
exclusive Spanish-Language rights holder.
Note: An earlier version of this story included an
announcement that Univision was adapting Breaking
Bad, in addition to Gossip Girl.
Sony Pictures Television, the studio behind the AMC
drama, denied that a deal was in place. Univision did not immediately respond
for comment.
