Dark Hearts, an action drama following French soldiers in Iraq, has been acquired by the BBC from Paris-headquartered distributor Newen Connect.
A release date is yet to be announced, but the BBC has said the six-part programme is “coming soon” to BBC Four and iPlayer.
The series concerns a French special forces unit on the precipice of the 2016 Battle of Mosul. With a terror threat hanging over their heads, the unit must kidnap the daughter and grandchildren of a prominent ISIS leader in hopes of extracting information from him.
“Not only is Dark Hearts a gripping mix of action drama and espionage thriller,” said Sue Deeks, Head of BBC Programme Acquisition (Fiction), “it also gives a fascinating insight into the lives of a close knit elite military unit who know that every mission could be their last.”
French actors Marie Dompnier, Thierry Godard, and Nicolas Duvauchelle star in the hour-long drama, which is known as ‘Coeurs Noirs’ in French. It was created and written by Dang Thai Duong and Corinne Garfin.
Ziad Doueiri directs, whose 2017 feature The Insult earned his native Lebanon its first Academy Award for best foreign language film. Gilles de Verdiere, of Mandarin Productions, serves as producer.
“Coeurs Noirs may be a gripping story about French elite soldiers fighting terrorism,” said Rodolphe Buet, CEO of Newen Connect, “but at its heart the series contains themes that transcend geography, making it accessible to a broad range of audiences.”
Dark Hearts will be broadcast on BBC Four and available on iPlayer.
