The Norwegian teen drama Skam was a worldwide smash, with obsessive fans stalking the characters on Instagram and even learning Norwegian with the sole purpose of being able to better understand the characters. So it was only a matter of time before the cult TV show got an English-language remake.
Facebook has announced it is to remake the cult show for its burgeoning streaming platform, Watch, which showcases original content, CNN reported. From 2015 there were four seasons of Skam, which means "shame", on Norwegian broadcaster NRK, with clips from each show going online at various unpredictable times each week before the full-length episode was shown on TV.
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Facebook’s head of creative strategy Ricky Van Veen said he "felt like I was seeing the future of storytelling" when he first heard about the show. Announcing the news, he continued: “We’re incredibly enthusiastic about bringing it to global audiences on Facebook Watch," Variety reported.
Facebook's version will be made by Simon Fuller's XIX Entertainment and will include Julie Andem, one of Skam's original creators, as the showrunner, which will no doubt reassure fans of the original. “Facebook Watch, with its inherently social components and passionate community of fans that surround it, is the absolute perfect partner for Skam,” Fuller said.
Skam is one of several original shows that Facebook has acquired for its streaming platform, including Five Points, produced by Kerry Washington, and a 30-minute episodic show based on the hit Humans of New York photoblog.