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Sky Unveils ‘I Hate Suzie’ Season Two & ‘Tattooist Of Auschwitz’ Adaptation, Confirms ‘Wicked’ Will Film At Sky Studios Elstree

Sky has unveiled a second series of I Hate Suzie and an adaptation of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, while confirming Universal PicturesWicked will be one of the first projects to be filmed at Sky Studios Elstree, relocating from the U.S.

The Comcast-owned outfit is to present the news at a glitzy London event taking place this evening, led by the announcements about Wicked, the new TV dramas, and comedies featuring Sheridan Smith, Katherine Ryan and Suranne Jones.

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Sky is upping its original commissioning by 60% to 200 shows this year, revealed by CEO Dana Strong last week.

Meanwhile, a host of Sky Original films including Letitia Wright-starring Aisha, Colin Farrell’s After Yang, political thriller The Independent (Brian Cox, Jodie Turner-Smith, John Cena, Ann Dowd) and Liam Hemsworth/Russell Crowe-featuring Poker Face are all coming to the UK platform, according to Sky.

Sky Studios Elstree, the brand spanking new studio that Sky says will generate £3BN ($3.7BN) of production investment over five years, is to host Comcast stablemate Universal Pictures’ Wicked from Crazy Rich Asians writer Jon M. Chu, a feature that has been almost 20 years in the making in some form. The move comes as studio space springs up everywhere in the UK and Sky sees Elstree as a key way in which it can compete with the biggest streaming services and local broadcasters.

Also revealed tonight will be Billie Piper and Lucy Prebble’s I Hate Suzie returning for a second season, titled I Hate Suzie Too, along with another series of COBRA: Rebellion starring Robert Carlyle and an adaptation of Heather Morris’ bestselling novel The Tattooist of Auschwitz.

In the former, Suzie, played by Piper, has a new agent, new PR and a new job – dancing for likes on reality TV competition Dance Crazee, which has the Saturday night audience hooked. Having lost everyone that matters to her, she returns to her first love – the public.

The show garnered critical acclaim when it aired in summer 2020 and was nominated for three BAFTAs, including for Piper and support Leila Farzad.

In the comedy space, Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everything will feature Doctor Who star Smith as a recovering “addict to everything,” Romantic Getaway stars Ryan and Romesh Ranganathan as a couple who steal money from their boss in order to fund IVF treatment, and Christmas Carole with Vigil star Jones takes a modern look at the Dickensian classic, with Jones playing an unashamedly outspoken and wealthy tech entrepreneur.

Sky has been teasing new shows throughout the week, unveiling a six-strong factual slate Monday, a Deadline-revealed doc about Russian exiles in the UK on Tuesday and a four-strong entertainment slate earlier today.

“Great stories have the power to help us connect with each other, and at its best entertainment isn’t something we watch, it’s something we feel and experience,” said Zai Bennett, Managing Director, Content, Sky UK and Ireland.

“That’s why we’re creating and investing in world-class original storytelling to give our customers even more of their favourite shows and films than ever before.”

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