Alfred Hitchcock Estate Inks Universal Cable Development Deal

Universal Cable Productions has inked a deal with the Alfred Hitchcock Estate.

As part of the partnership, UCP will develop an anthology series called Welcome to Hitchcock based on the filmmaker’s most popular movies including The Birds and Psycho and television series Alfred Hitchcock Presents. The new show will focus on a single seasonlong mystery or crime in the vein of Hitchcock’s classic style.

Vermilion Entertainment, the newly formed television production company from the founders of Cross Creek Pictures, will collaborate on the project, along with Chris Columbus’ 1492 Pictures/Ocean Blue Entertainment. The series marks Vermilion’s first foray into scripted television.

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Columbus will direct the pilot and also serve as an executive producer on the series alongside Michael Barnathan, Timmy Thompson, Todd Thompson and the Hitchcock family. Casey Tebo will serve as a co-producer.

The deal marks the second time an NBCUniversal studio has created a series based on a Hitchcock property — the first being A&E’s drama Bates Motel, which is produced by UCP’s corporate sibling Universal Television and based on characters from Hitchcock’s 1960 film Psycho.

“Long after his death, Alfred Hitchcock continues to be one of the most celebrated directors and visionaries in the world, a master manipulator of the macabre,” said Dawn Olmstead, UCP’s executive vp development. “We’re honored that the Hitchcock Estate has put its trust in our studio to pay homage to his work.”

“Our grandfather always collaborated with the best and the brightest to help shape his vision,” said Katie O’Connell-Fiala on behalf of the Hitchcock Trust and MTK Corporation, which was founded by O’Connell-Fiala and her sisters Mary O’Connell-Stone and Tere O’Connell-Carrubba. “We’re confident that Universal Cable Productions will take great care in helping us to continue preserving his legacy.”