ZeroZeroZero attracts Amazon, Gabriel Byrne, Andrea Riseborough

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Amazon has signed on for the drug trafficking drama ZeroZeroZero and adds Gabriel Byrne and Andrea Riseborough to the cast.

ZeroZeroZero, written and produced by the team behind the stark and gritty crime drama Gomorrah, has started production by adding Gabriel Byrne (The Usual Suspects, In Treatment) and Andrea Riseborough (Birdman) to the cast.

The series — which will focus on the international cocaine trade — has been picked up by Amazon and is produced by the Italian based Cattleya.

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Variety reports that the eight-part series is a true international affair, with the action taking place across three continents and being shot in six different languages (Arabic, English, French, Italian, Spanish, and Wolof).

Amazon will distribute the series in the US, Canada, Latin America, and Spain, but Sky is distributing for the UK and Germany, with Canal+ distributing the series in France and French-speaking Africa.

StudioCanal is selling the series internationally. The cast also includes Dane Dehaan and the Spanish speaking Harold Torres.

ZeroZeroZero is based on a book by Gomorrah writer Robert Saviano and will be directed by Gomorrah’s Stefano Sollima in partnership with Pablo Trapero (The Clan) and Janus Metz (True Detective).

The action will focus on the distribution of cocaine from its point of origin in Mexico to its final destination in Calabria, examining “how the international trafficking of this special ‘commodity’ is affecting the market, the world economy and even our lives,” explains Sollima. It will highlight the different groups and people involved, from who profits from the drug trade to who suffers because of it.

As the cocaine makes its way across the world it will pass through the hands of Mexican cartels, the Calabrian mafia, and greedy businessmen.

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If the quality and originality of Gomorrah is anything to go by, an international production on this scale by the same production team has the potential to be a paradigm-shifting piece of television. There’s plenty of buzz to back it up, but we’ll just have to wait and see if it delivers.