Future of Rebus TV series filmed in Edinburgh in doubt after UK streaming service pulled

The six-part series due to stream next year is the first Rebus TV adaptation for nearly 15 years

The future of TV series Rebus has been thrown into doubt after the company that commissioned it has announced the end of its streaming services in the UK.

Set in contemporary Scotland the new six-part drama follows the iconic fictional detective at a psychological crossroads in his late 30s and was set to stream exclusively on Viaplay in 2024.

But the reimagining of Sir Ian Rankin’s Rebus novels about one of Scottish fiction’s most famous detectives is now without a home, after Viaplay announced streaming will be pulled from Canada, the U.S and the UK. The entertainment provider said the move is part of a cost-cutting drive which will see 25 per cent of their staff laid off, while it plans to focus on its core Nordic markets

Ian Rankin shared photos of filming at locations in Edinburgh

It comes weeks after filming of the new TV series, starring Outlander star Richard Rankin in the lead role, in locations across Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Viaplay launched in the UK in November last year and in the same month announced their first commission - screenwriter Gregory Burke was creating a drama with Sir Ian Rankin as executive producer, planned as a returning series exclusively for Viaplay.

The eagerly awaited production by Eleventh Hour Films is written by Gregory Burke (Entebbe, 71) and directed by Niall MacCormick (Complicit, The Victim, Wallander) and Fiona Walton (Shetland, Annika).

Viaplay reported “higher quarter-over-quarter losses for the international operations due to the content investments that we have made, the consolidation of the U.K. operation and the launches in North America.”

Crime author Ian Rankin

The Nordic broadcaster also streams Scotland men's matches as well as the Scottish League Cup.

In an update from Viaplay CEO Jorgen Madsen Lindemann on Thursday he said: “We are today announcing a new strategy and plan, which includes, but is not limited to, focusing on our core Nordic, Netherlands and Viaplay Select operations (which make available a wide range of Viaplay series, films and documentaries through partners around the world); implementing a new operational model; downsizing, partnering or exiting our other international markets; rightsizing and pricing our product offering in the Nordics; undertaking a major cost reduction program; and conducting an immediate strategic review of the entire business to consider all options, including content sublicensing, asset disposals, equity injections or the sale of the whole group.”

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