Here’s a first look at Hagen (working title), the German-Czech fantasy drama epic, which now counts Fremantle as its worldwide distributor.
Based on Wolfgang Hohlbein’s bestselling novel ‘Hagen von Tronje’, the series is a reimagining of the medieval Nibelungen folk saga, which is widely considered as an inspiration behind modern fantasy franchises such as George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones and J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of The Rings.
Super-indie Fremantle has jumped to acquire rights outside of German-speaking territories, with the agreement covering the six-part series and accompanying feature film. Fremantle’s stablemate at German conglomerate Bertelsmann, RTL, has German streaming and TV rights.
Fremantle plans to launch the series at its Fremantle Presents showcase this Friday (March 1) at the London TV Screenings. This follows an agreement between Rebecca Dundon on behalf of Fremantle and Friedrich Radmann on behalf of Constantin Film.
The series is billed as a “dramatic and ultimately catastrophic series of events” that “unfold in this sweeping universal tale of love, power, family and war delivered with impressive cinematic quality.” Cyrill Boss and Philipp Stennert are directing and they have written the scripts alongside Doron Wisotzky.
The series follows Hagen, a soldier and Lord Commander loyal to King Gunter, who secretly harbors a deep love for the monarch’s daughter, Princess Kriemhild. When the Huns threaten to invade and a legendary dragon slayer, Siegfried, arrives, the king decides to marry a new wife, a mystical Valkyrie queen called Brunhild and calls on the help of both Siegfried and Hagen.
Gijs Naber (Blackbook, The Story of My Wife) stars as protagonist Hagen, with Jannis Niewöhner (Amazon’s Beat, Munich) as his rival, Siegfried. Lilja van der Zwaag plays Princess Kriemhild, Rosalinde Mynster is Valkyrie Brunhild, and Dominic Marcus Singer takes on the role of King Gunter. Jördis Triebel (Dark) and Jörg Hartmann (The Weissensee Saga) support as Queen Ute and King Dankrat, respectively.
The feature film is funded by Filmförderungsanstalt, FilmFernsehFonds Bayern, production incentives from the Czech Film Fund, the German Federal Film Fund, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, and Government of Iceland, Ministry of Culture and Business Affairs.
The series is funded by production incentives from the Czech Film Fund, Creative Europe – Media Programme of the European Union, FilmFernsehFonds Bayern, German Motion Picture Fund, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg and Government of Iceland, Ministry of Culture and Business Affairs.
Producers for the series are Jan Ehlert (The Allegation), Christoph Müller (Look Who’s Back) and Christian Rohde (The Witnesses) with Filip Hering (Never Look Away) co-producing on the Czech side. Martin Moszkowicz and Oliver Berben of Constantin Film act as executive producers. Thomas Disch and Nico Grein have editorial responsibility on behalf of RTL under the direction of Hauke Bartel, Head of Fiction RTL Germany.
Fremantle and Constantin previously worked together in 2021, when the distributor handled global distribution for Constantin Television and Amazon Studios co-production We Children From Bahnhof Zoo. The series sold to over 92 territories worldwide.
“Prepare yourselves for premium entertainment with truly stunning production values, which promises to draw audiences into an immersive world filled with epic battles, love, power and betrayal; all delivered with striking visual integrity,” said Jens Richter, CEO of International at Fremantle.