CBC, Canadian national broadcast station, has picked up a drama series by the name of Butterfly, starring Anna Friel (Marcella), from Fremantle. The CBC network may be known to audiences for their work on the shows Anne with an E, Schitt’s Creek, and Kim’s Convenience.
The mini-series will follow the story of an 11-year old boy who wants to live life as a girl and will primiere during the late winter 2019 line-up. BAFTA-winning screenwriter Tony Marchant (The Mark Of Cain) created and wrote the new series which will star Emmett J. Scanlan and Callum Booth-Ford.
According to GLAAD’s 2017 – 2018 Where We Are on TV report, this year there are seventeen regular and recurring transgender characters tracked across all three entertainment platforms. Nine are trans women, four are trans men, and four are non-binary. Only four (5%) transgender characters are expected to be seen on broadcast network’s prime time scripted programming block; two regular characters and two recurring characters.
Of the four, one character is a transgender woman, two are trans men, and one is a non-binary identified character. Last year, GLAAD counted three transgender regular or recurring characters on scripted broadcast programming, though Star’s Amiyah Scott (Cotton) is the only one who has returned this year.
Butterfly‘s creation will hopefully bring more attention to issues the transgender community face in their early adolescence and allow for more LGBTQ representation during the 2019 quarter.
Per Fremantle’s website, Jenna Bourdeau Senior Director of Acquisitions for CBC, said: “With its nuanced approach to such a timely and intimate story, Butterfly is a wonderful example of the type of best-in-class international content that CBC is seeking in its acquisitions. We are proud to share this relevant drama with our audiences.”
The drama was commissioned by ITV and produced by RED Production Company and AENON. Nicola Shindler, Caroline Hollick and Adam Kemp are executive producers. Fremantle has global distribution rights.
Deadline originally reported the story.