ITV Buys 'The Americans' For U.K. Viewers

LONDON -- Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution has inked a deal with U.K. commercial network ITV for the broadcast rights to upcoming drama The Americans starring Golden Globe Award-winning actress Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys. ITV has sealed a two-year deal for the show slated to premiere on the channel "in the coming months."

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The Americans centers on the arranged marriage of two KGB spies who pose as Americans in suburban Washington, D.C., shortly after Ronald Reagan is elected President. The couple has two children who know nothing about their parents’ true identity. Tensions also heighten upon the arrival of a new neighbor, an FBI agent working in counter intelligence.

The deal was sealed by Steve Cornish, svp and managing director, Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution and Sasha Breslau, head of acquired series for ITV.

Cornish said: "We have had a huge response to the show from international broadcasters since we launched it at MIPCOM and are delighted to have secured this two-year deal with ITV." In the U.S.,The Americans is scheduled to premiere Jan. 30 on FX Network.

The Americans is co-produced by Fox Television Studios and FX Productions. The series is executive produced by Joe Weisberg, who is also showrunner. Graham Yost (Justified, Boomtown), Joel Fields (Rizzoli & Isles) and Amblin Television’s Darryl Frank (Falling Skies, Smash) and Justin Falvey (Falling Skies, The Borgias) are also executive producers.