Golden Globe Nominee and Emmy� Award Winner, Tom Skerritt, Angus Macfayden and Karine Vanasse Star in Killer Wave, an RHI Original Miniseries Premiering on ION Television AUGUST 5th
First of 12 RHI Originals to Debut
(New York, NY � July 09, 2007) � RHI Entertainment, the global leader in the production and distribution of groundbreaking movies, miniseries and series for television, announced today that Golden Globe Nominee and Emmy Award� winner, Tom Skerritt (Steel Magnolias, Picket Fences, Brothers & Sisters), will star in Killer Wave, a four-hour miniseries event premiering on the RHI Movie Weekend on ION, Sunday, August 5th (7/6c). Airing all in one night, the miniseries features Angus Macfayden (Braveheart, Alias, Saw 3), Steven McHattie (A History of Violence, Seinfeld) and Karine Vanasse (Head in the Clouds, Set Me Free).
Killer Wave is an action-disaster miniseries about a conspiracy theory regarding the manufacture of fear for profit. In the story, a large corporation hatches a scheme to devastate American cities on the East Coast with the intent of winning a multi-billion dollar contract from the government to build a sea wall along the eastern seaboard. Marine engineers John McAdams (Macfayden) and Sophie Marleau (Vanasse) try to find the perpetrators of these "natural disasters," but they have to evade both the FBI and paid assassins chasing them. Meanwhile, the rogue corporation's CEO, Victor Bannister (Skerritt), and his trusted advisor, Edgar Powell (McHattie), have devised the "creative destruction" plan as a means to save their company from bankruptcy.
Killer Wave was filmed in more than 45 locations throughout Canada during the summer of 2006. The miniseries was directed by Bruce McDonald (Queer As Folk, Degrassi: The Next Generation) and executive produced by Robert Halmi, Sr. and Robert Halmi, Jr. (Arabian Nights, Human Trafficking, Merlin).
"Killer Wave is the perfect first miniseries premiere event for ION television," said Robert Halmi, Jr., President and CEO of RHI Entertainment. "It's completely the type of larger-than-life production RHI is known for and will continue to bring to the RHI Movie Weekend on ION."
"We're excited to kick off the initial wave of original content with the aptly titled Killer Wave," said Brandon Burgess, CEO of ION Media Networks. "We're looking forward to building on our partnership with RHI Entertainment to broaden our lineup with exciting, high-quality programming, which we'll support with our 90-million-home reach."
Last fall, RHI Entertainment and ION Media Networks announced a new partnership, a prime-time destination called RHI Movie Weekend, whereby RHI would serve as the exclusive television programming supplier on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights for an initial two-year period. The relationship kicked off on the weekend of June 29th, with a digitally re-mastered edition of the critically acclaimed Lonesome Dove, which is airing on four consecutive Saturday nights. RHI expects to debut five additional original movie premieres on ION this year.
About RHI Entertainment
RHI Entertainment, LLC, is the global leader in the production and distribution of groundbreaking miniseries and movies for television. Since the company's inception, under the guidance of Robert Halmi, Sr. and Robert Halmi, Jr., RHI has produced and distributed over 4,000 hours of quality television programming, received more than 100 Emmy� Awards, and outperformed the competition annually in view ratings. Currently, RHI provides 40-60 new television movies and miniseries a year to networks worldwide.
About ION Media Networks
ION Media Networks, Inc. owns and operates the nation's largest broadcast television station and ION Television, reaching over 90 million U.S. television households via its nationwide broadcast television, cable and satellite distribution systems. ION Television currently features popular TV series and movies from the award-winning libraries of Warner Bros., Sony Pictures Television, and CBS Television, among others. ION Media has also partnered with RHI Entertainment, which owns over 4,000 hours of acclaimed television content, to provide weekend primetime programming beginning in June 2007. Utilizing its digital multicasting capability, the company has launched several digital TV brands, including qubo, a television and multimedia network for children formed in partnership with several leading media and entertainment companies, and ION Life, a television and multimedia network dedicated to health and wellness for consumers and families. For more information, visit www.ionmedia.tv.
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