Case: Walter Presents first Icelandic drama on Channel 4
David Farnor | On 13, Jan 2017
Walter Presents is heading to Iceland for the first time this winter with the premiere of award-winning drama Case.
In another first, the smash hit series will premiere its opening episode on Channel 4 – the first time an Icelandic drama series has ever aired on a main terrestrial channel in the UK.
From the director of Trapped, Baldvin Zophoniasson, Case is a tale of abuse, corruption and scandal set in the heart of Reykjavik. The body of a beautiful young ballerina is found hung on the main stage of the city’s National Theatre. The case is closed as suicide but three people believe there to be something darker and more terrifying at play.
Determined to get to the truth, the paths of these troubled souls converge deep in the cold heart of Iceland’s capital and their investigations reveal unknown but powerful forces at play behind the veneer of a respectable society.
The hard-hitting psychological thriller was a barnstorming success in its home country. Its premiere on Iceland’s Channel 2 achieved a 52 per cent of the audience share. In December, Case was also featured in The New York Times’ Top 10 International Series of 2016.
It comes as no surprise, then, that Walter Presents should snap it up for UK release: the online channel, which is dedicated to foreign-language TV, has become the go-to destination for global drama and comedy, with a library that ranges from award-winning French crime thriller Mafiosa to record-breaking Swedish political drama Blue Eyes. Its commitment to quality has paid off, with its launch title Deutschland 83 drawing unprecedented audiences on Channel 4 and the online service racking up over 17.5 million streams in the 12 months since.
2017 is off to an equally strong start: Case follows the release of record-breaking Nordic series Acquitted on the site today. Episode 1 of the Icelandic drama will premiere on Channel 4 at 10pm on Tuesday 24th January, after which the entire nine-episode season will be made available on walterpresents.com. Stay tuned for our review of the show. For more on what’s coming soon to Walter Presents, meanwhile, click here.
