ABC pulled miniseries funding over casting disagreement
Exclusive: The ABC has pulled investment for a six part miniseries because it didn't want a US actress to play an Australian character, but it will air on UKTV.
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Exclusive: The ABC has confirmed it pulled investment funding for a six part miniseries over disagreement about casting decisions.
A year ago the broadcaster announced Top of the Lake, an anticipated new miniseries directed by Jane Campion (The Piano, Portrait of a Lady) would be one of its 2011 projects.
But yesterday Pay TV channel UK TV announced it would premiere the drama in 2013, as part of a co-production with BBC Two and Sundance Channel in the United States.
The ensemble cast will feature Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men), Holly Hunter (The Piano, Saving Grace), Peter Mullan (War Horse, Trainspotting) and David Wenham (Killing Time, Answered by Fire, The Lord of the Rings).
Produced by Emile Sherman and Iain Canning (The King’s Speech, Shame) and Philippa Campbell (Black Sheep) the New Zealand mystery follows Detective Robin Griffin’s obsessive search for a pregnant 12-year-old last seen standing chest deep in a frozen lake.
Yesterday an ABC spokesperson told TV Tonight, “ABC TV did withdraw its investment because we were not prepared to have an American actress play the lead role – who is an Australian police officer.”
The lead role of Robin Griffin is to be played by US-born actress Elisabeth Moss, best known as Mad Men‘s Peggy Olsen.
A UK TV channel spokesperson advised that producers See Saw wanted to cast the best person for the role.
“The character was actually born in New Zealand, goes to Australia in her teens and then returns to NZ as an adult,” they said.
The project has also received funding from Screen Australia and Screen NSW. Those funding decisions also indicated TV3 was involved in its development but the series will now air in NZ on UK TV.
The backdown by the public broadcaster comes at a time when a debate is raging over government plans to lift the limits for foreign actors to work in Australia.
Actors Equity has argued against the changes that would allow Australian producers to import more performers on projects subsidised by Australian taxpayers and guaranteed by local content regulation.
The series, written by Jane Campion and Gerard Lee, will commence filming in February 2012 in Queenstown, New Zealand, and is set to screen in 2013. As a major investment by UK TV it will help meet part of its local drama requirements as a Pay TV drama channel.
Says Deirdre Brennan, Director of TV for BBC Worldwide Australia: “Top of the Lake is a unique creative collaboration, a truly international project that showcases a remarkable production team, cast and location. It is an honour to play a part in bringing this landmark drama series exclusively to UKTV audiences in Australia and New Zealand.”
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- Tagged with Answered by Fire, Killing Time, Mad Men, Saving Grace, Top Of The Lake
31 Responses
How can a channel called, UKTV, have local drama requirements? :/
By being operated within Australia.
@P: That’s because UKTV also shows programs not produced by the BBC (e.g. Coronation Street, Midsomer Murders, Heartbeat).
If she was the best candidate for the role then brilliant good casting, good luck I hope it is a massive success here and around the world but if it was a way to snare an american market then good on ABC for getting out of the project – I hope it sinks like a stone. I still can’t hear the words “Thornbirds” without cringing!
Why do we have to be so parochial? Australian actors work in the US and UK all the time. This is cringeworthy.
Off topic but why doesnt UKTV be renamed BBC Australia? It would strengthen the brand here in Australia.
Personally, I would rather watch a great character and let slight imperfections of accent slide. If it’s a good story, I would hopefully be more into the drama than little things like this.
Sure, Aussie actors for Aussie parts would be ideal, but the right talent needs to be there at the audition. If that’s an American, so be it.
Do you seriously like “The Mentalist” or “House” less because of the protagonist’s background?
Not sure this was the best decision by the ABC for a story in our region.
I don’t like Aussies playing Americans or Americans playing Aussies. No matter how hard they try, the accent usually slips at some stage. Many people may not notice but I have keen ear for accents, so it annoys the hell out of me. I just don’t bother.
Quite so, Philip – I agree. Americans ought to be able to play Australians. But usually they cant. Not even Meryl Streep could do it. “The dingo’s got my buybee!”
Richard Chamberlain in “Thorn Birds”?
Burt Lancaster in “Man From Snowy River”??
I’m open to the suggestion that an American could play an Aussie, but I have yet to see a successful example of it.
Can anyone name one?
This is ridiculous. It is A OK with everybody in this country for Aussie actors to go overseas and take jobs that would otherwise go to Americans but when the tables are turned we don’t like it.
This is a major international production and because of this they need a ‘name ‘actress to appeal to foreign buyers.
Miss Moss is an excellent actress.
Fair enough. Surely there are enough decent Australian actors who could play this role?
Gasbo – have you seen anything recently produced from the US? Not just HBO but many other great programs such as Holly Hunter’s Saving Grace – far superior from the formulaic stuff that haunts Friday nights on the ABC.
Every industry reacts when it feels under threat from foreign labour, which is how the union is responding to government plans. Why should film and TV be any different? There are already levels in place to allow foreign performers to work here and nobody has issue with that. I suspect if our industry was as healthy as the US we too would allow higher levels, but everything should really be in perspective. It’s been decades since Meryl Streep played Lindy Chamberlain …. do audiences really want to open our stories to more of this? Not so sure….
Good on ABC. I cringe when I hear that semi-Kiwi accent from Kate Leigh in Underbelly:Razor.
What about resembling the Australian woman that she actually was?
You don’t go in to a production with a filmmaker like Jane Campion and then try to tell her how to cast her piece. Get a grip ABC. This current push by local actors to limit foreign actors is the ultimate in hypocrisy. Our actors can rush willy nilly overseas and play Americans and English, but perish the thought anyone should play an Australian. Small little talents scared they are not up to competing with the best in the world on their home turf.
This would have been an ideal comeback vehicle for Denise Drysdale.
Burgo should have been in it as well. He’s much better than David Wenham.
Read American sites like TV Guide and you will see that they complain about Aussie and NZ actors in their shows.
How many Aussies are currently on US TV playing non-Aussie characters? A heck of a lot more than you would first think. How many Aussie film actors are playing non-Aussie characters? Even more.
And yet, the ABC gets its knickers in a knot if one “Aussie” role gets filled by a non-Aussie actor? Get a grip, Aunty – sure, it would be good if an Aussie/Kiwi filled the role (who, from reading, seems to be more a Kiwi than an Aussie), but if an American actress is the best fit for the role, who the hell cares?
People, get a grip. ABC is funded by taxpayers. Do you think PBS in US would hire foreign actors to play Americans? Probably not, because people would complain about it. ABC did the right thing. Stop comparing ABC with other commercial TV stations.
Yes Aussie actors do get a lot of work overseas, but surely the crucial issue is whether tax-payers should subsidize such ventures. In the free market sure, but in public part-funded productions I do think there has to be a line. Unfortunately the ABC and other funding bodies are so inconsistent that the real issue gets lost.
@ gasbo: Exactly. A lot of American/Australian dramas become tedious and dull due to the fact that they have an arbitrary 22 episode season to fill. I feel that a season of 8 quality, non-filler episodes is all that one needs, really (provided that not a single scene is wasted; aiding in the development of character/plot).
It’s much worse in Turkey though, where the average drama/comedy runs for a whopping 2 hours per episode, and the average season consists of about 40+ episodes. No, I’m not kidding.
and, what? they had no problem with a british actress playing an australian in The Slap? Geeez, get over yourselves ABC TV….
I agree with you Phillip.
A lot of Aussie actors have gone overseas and become successful by playing non-Aussie characters – but here we get our knickers in our knot if it’s the other way around.
Could this be the reason The Kings Speech didn’t become a UK/Australian co-production?
Why not have an American, most of our programming looks and feels like US productions anyway, poor and repetitive plots, weak characters, no Aussie culture at all. The only difference is Aussie writers don’t have enough creativity to write 13 or 22+/- x 45 minute episode without a 10 minute nude and/or sex scene and . Give me UK drama/comedy any day
This decision is pathetic. When will Australia decide to grow up and compete in a global market. So Aussies can go to the U.S. and play Americans, but not the other way around. So Hypercritical1
Despite the strange casting decision, I suspect this may also have something to do with this movement: aussiefaces.org.au