“Death in Paradise” Receives First International Adaptation in Croatia, Promising “a Murder Mystery, Humor, Heat and a Strong Sense of Place” (Exclusive)

The crime series “Death in Paradise” will receive its first international adaptation in Croatia. The non-English crime drama will bring its blend of mystery and paradise-like setting to Brač island in Croatia. Principal photography is scheduled for spring 2027. While the original UK series is produced by Fremantle's Red Planet Pictures for […]

The crime series "Death in Paradise" will receive its first international adaptation in Croatia.

While the original UK series is being produced for the BBC by Fremantle's Red Planet Pictures, the Croatian adaptation - called 'Ubojstvo u raju' - is being produced for HRT1 by CGM Films, which is already behind 'Sram'. Related Stories Taylor Swift's 'Patient Zero' Holds No.1 on Singles Chart for Second Week Taylor Swift has spent her 100th week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 as 'Life of a Showgirl' tops the second week of the 'Encore'.

The series will be helmed by the same producers, Bruno Mostich and Ivan Lvorcek, with Jelena Gavrilovic joining the project as director. Popular in Variety

Mostic and Lvorcek admitted in a joint statement that they are "very excited" to bring "Death in Paradise" to Croatia.

They said: "The series is one of the BBC's most successful shows, and with 'Ubojstvo u raju' we will bring the same mix of murder mystery, humour, warmth and a strong sense of place to Croatia. We want to adapt the series to Croatian culture and create a real Croatian world with characters and events rooted in life on the Adriatic island."

The original "Death in Paradise" directed by Robert Thorogood has reached audiences in over 230 territories. Fifteen years on from its UK premiere, the series remains a mainstay of BBC One: its 16th series is currently in production and the show has already been rebooted for a 17th season.

It also has two spin-offs called Beyond Paradise and Return to Paradise.

Rose Hughes, vice president of global format sales at BBC Studios, also praised the show's "interesting murder mysteries and rich local character".

"We are delighted to see CGM Films bring this format to Croatia for their first international adaptation and look forward to seeing how they make it uniquely Croatian against a stunning new backdrop."

This movie takes place in a fictional island community with production in and around Suptar. The series will be written by Sonia Tarokic and Valentina Batalic, with Maja Pfister working as an editor for HRT.

Croatian editor Rahla Stefanov said: "I am very pleased that HRT will bring it to our Croatian audience. Having worked closely with the same independent production company on the successful local adaptation of 'Sram', I am confident that this new project will build on that experience and together we can create another quality series that will resonate with Croatian viewers."

Maja Fišter, commissioning editor at HRT, added: "A strong collaboration between the broadcaster and the production team is essential when adapting an authentic international format for a local audience."

"We have built a relationship based on trust and mutual understanding, and for 'Death in Paradise' we have a shared commitment to preserve the original essence while giving the series a distinct Croatian identity."

The format - and the series - is distributed internationally by BBC Studios.

"The original series has been a well-known and trusted brand in Croatia for more than a decade. It has built a loyal audience here, so Croatian viewers are already familiar with its world, tone and characters. But what we love about "Death in Paradise" is how a proper cologne wraps itself in sunshine, humor and warmth, Ivan Lovercek told Variety.

For an hour, you are somewhere else. On a gray winter evening, it's pure escapism. This is a big part of how it works around the world. We are not simply moving the original series to a Croatian location. We want Croatia's environment, culture and relationships to become stories and characters."

For Lovreček, Croatian identity is much more than beautiful places and the Adriatic Sea.

"The real identity comes from the people and the way of life in a small Mediterranean community. There is a stark contrast between continental and coastal life with different mentalities, social dynamics, habits, food and language. There's always a certain tension between these two worlds, but there's also a lot of humor in how people perceive each other.

He added: "For us, this provides unique opportunities for good storytelling and adaptation of characters to truly feel Croatian."

At the center of the story is the relationship between Petar, a detective who feels out of place, and the local police team. Especially Marina, who challenges her understanding of the island way of doing things.

Bruno Mostić said: "We want the audience to enjoy solving the puzzle, but also to become attached to the characters and their evolving relationships. Since Croatia has more than a thousand islands, creating our fictional island gave us the freedom to use customs and traditions from across the Adriatic and bring them together in our own world."

"Tourism plays an important role in Croatia. It is intertwined with our stories alongside island traditions, close-knit communities and the contrast between how a place looks to visitors and the real life there.

To make a story universal, he insists, you have to define it.

"Our main audience is in Croatia and the wider region, but the combination of a popular global format, mysteries and a specific setting on the Adriatic Sea gives us confidence in the show's international potential. We absolutely hope the series travels."