‘A Moody Christmas’
The Fox network has commissioned a US remake of Jungle Entertainment’s A Moody Christmas, the comedy series which followed Dan Moody as he returned home to spend Christmas with his dysfunctional family.
Trent O’Donnell and Phil Lloyd created the Australian show, the precursor to the series The Moodys, for Jungleboys (now Jungle Entertainment) and the ABC.
O’Donnell directed the 2012 series which featured the ensemble cast of Patrick Brammall as Dan, Ian Meadows, Jane Harber, Danny Adcock, Robina Beard, Tina Bursill, Guy Edmonds, Darren Gilshenan, Rachel Gordon and Lloyd.
Jungle Entertainment’s Jason Burrows, Lloyd and O’Donnell will serve as executive producers on the six episode remake produced by CBS TV Studios and Fox Entertainment.
This will be the third Jungle-originated show for the US this year, joining CBS All Access’ No Activity series 3 and FX’s Mr Inbetween season 2.
Six years on from The Moodys, there is potential for another season. “I wouldn’t rule out another Australian series one day as there is a lot of love for it, and the US version will be different,” Burrows tells IF.
The writers on A Moody Christmas are comedy veterans Bob Fisher, Rob Greenberg and Tad Quill. Fisher and Greenberg co-wrote the movie remake of Overboard, with Greenberg directing. Quill, whose credits include Scrubs and Spin City, created the CBS comedy Angel From Hell.
The series is expected to premiere on Fox this Christmas. There is no word yet on casting or the Australian broadcaster.
Fox gave a put pilot commitment to a US adaptation from CBS TV Studios and The Tannenbaum Co. in 2013, which O’Donnell was to direct, but it did not go ahead.
However Fox executives remained high on the concept as the potential for a franchise and it was reworked with Fisher, Greenberg and Quill.
“It begins at Christmas but isn’t just limited to Christmas,” Fox Entertainment president Michael Thorn told Deadline. “We will meet this family, the Moodys, at very important events throughout their lifecycle that a family experiences together.
“Over the course of a year we would visit with this family for two to three six-episode cycles. “It’s truly a serialized comedy event in our mind where it has a beginning middle and end.”