Broadchurch, the hit British drama, is being taken on by Fox and adapted for the American audience.

David Tennant
David Tennant at the premiere of Nativity 2, London.

The original ITV series starred David Tennant and Olivia Colman. The story is as follows: a young boy is murdered in a Dorset village prompting the neighbour to turn on neighbour. The show centres on Tennant who is a troubled and socially inept police detective, helping him is Colman who plays his family orientated local Detective Sergeant. 

Broadchurch aired in the UK earlier this year. It was hugely popular: attracting over 10 million viewers for its finale and much debate on the culprit. Fox's decision to pick up the show was announced by their entertainment chairman, Kevin Reilly, in a statement issued on Thursday (1st August). Of the show he said "Broadchurch is the kind of storytelling that grabs your attention and keeps you riveted with every minute - which is exactly what we look for in an event series." 

Olivia Colman
Olivia Colman at the premiere of The World's End in London.

He went on to further explain that at Fox ""we love the layered characters, we've seen how well-received it's been in the U.K., and we're lucky to be able to bring a new version of this mystery to the U.S. audience."

Fox has taken on the project which is due to start production in January 2014. The production company expects the project to be completed for the 2014-2015 season. According to Entertainment Weekly, the original series' creator Chris Chibnall (who has worked on such shows as Dr. Who and Torchwood), will write the pilot episode. 

No further details have been provided and it is not known how much of the plot will be retained, as who the murderer was can easily be found out online. The original series is also being aired in anticipation of the adaptation. It begins on August 7th on Fox. 

Kevin Reilly
Kevin Reilly at the Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation 'Taste For A Cure' held at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, L.A.