‘Tall Tales & Murder’ Scores New International Deals As Season 2 Takes Shape

EXCLUSIVE: Crime caper Tall Tales & Murder has racked up more international sales as the team behind the show turn their attention to Season 2. The series bowed on RTÉ in Ireland last month to critical acclaim, and it will soon be on the BBC in the UK.

Filmin has now nabbed the Avalon-distributed show for Portugal and Spain, while Picbox has snagged it for Central and Eastern Europe.

Tall Tales & Murder is based upon the ‘Dublin Trilogy’ by Caimh McDonnell and landed a two-season order off the bat. Avalon produces the series with Metropolitan Pictures. It is written by Stuart Carolan (Love/Hate).

Co-creator Chris Addison (Veep), was in Cannes last week at MIPCOM, meeting with international execs as Avalon keeps up its distribution push on the series.

He told Deadline how the show has evolved from the books, as he starts to think about the show’s sophomore run.

“Any adaptation is going to be different from the source material, it’s just the degree to which it’s different. We left the source material so far behind in the first season that coming into Season 2, you’re off the rock. It’s a whole other world at that point.

“The first season starts out slightly odd and goes slowly bananas, so that means the pickup point of Season 2 is bananas.”

The Tall Tales & Murder cast includes Ella Lily Hyland (Black Doves), Aidan Gillen (Game of Thrones) and Philippa Dunne (Amandaland).

Addison said the show had been built around Hyland, who plays Bridget. “She’s the most naturally talented actor I’ve ever worked with,” he said.

Hyland was also in Cannes. The Irish star said Tall Tales & Murder marked her first time shooting on home turf with a local crew.

“There was a love on set that is rare,” she said. “Everyone worked really hard. It’s fair to say we had limited time to do all of the ambitious things that we wanted to do, so there was a sense of everyone being in it together. It meant a lot to everyone.”

The Iberia and CEE sales on Tall Tales & Murder follow earlier deals with international buyers, including SBS in Australia and ZDF in Germany.