22/02/2013 - The first thriller from Jussi Adler-Olsen’s series of deputy detective superintendent Carl Mørck and his Department Q was sold to five territories

"The interest in this thriller franchise is incredible – the demand has been massive, after we screened a promo in Berlin last week,” said ceo Rikke Ennis, of Danish international sales agency TrustNordisk, as she returned from the European Film Market having given buyers a glimpse of Danish director Mikkel Nørgaard’s The Keeper of Lost Causes, the first thriller from Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen’s series of novels.

Ennis licensed The Keeper..., which will be domestically released on October 3 by Nordisk Film Distribution, for the UK (Arrow Films), Australia-New Zealand (Madman Entertainment) and the Czech Republic (Aerofilms), while Poland’s Kino Swiat, Russia’s Silverbox and China’s HGC Entertainment signed for the first package of four films. Previous deals include Benelux (Lumiere), Germany-Austria (NFP) and Switzerland (Frenetic Films).

The first instalment in Zentropa Entertainments and Danish commercial broadcaster TV2’s €20.1 million Adler-Olsen franchise stars Danish actor Nikolaj Lie Kaas, and Swedish actor Fares Fares as deputy detective superintendent Carl Mørck of Department Q - for "cases of special focus" – and Swedish actor Fares Fares (photo) as his side-kick, Hafez al Hassad, searching for a woman politician (Sonja Richter), who disappeared five years ago.

The Keeper..., which won the US Deadly Pleasures’ Barry Prize for Best Novel, was scripted by Danish writer-director Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair), who will also sign the screenplays for the upcoming The Pheasant Killers, Message in a Bottle and Journal 64. Louise Vesth produces the series for Zentropa, with Zentropa Entertainments Berlin and Germany’s ZDF Enterprises.