STARZPLAY, PANTAYA AND THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO ANNOUNCE "EXPRESS" SERIES CAST AND PRODUCTION START IN MADRID WITH FIRST LOOK IMAGE

Maggie Civantos, Kiti Manver, Vicente Romero, Loreto Mauleón, Esteban Meloni, Alba Planas, Ana Marzoa, Omar Banana, Bernardo Flores and the young Manuela Rojas Star in the Series The Gripping and Suspenseful Thriller is Starzplay's First Local Language Production in Spain and the First to Dramatize the Notorious Express Kidnappings

(C) Julio Vergne - THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO

Madrid, 17 March, 2021 - Starzplay and THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO today announced they have started production on "Express," Starzplay's first International Original Series to be filmed and produced in Spain with a first look image. The action thriller is written by Iván Escobar ("Locked Up"), Antonio Sánchez Olivas ("Aida") and Martín Suárez ("Rabia"), and created by Iván Escobar, who also serves as the series showrunner. Gabe Ibáñez ("Autómata") and Iñaki Peñafiel ("Perdida") are set to direct. The series will be available through the platform's service in Spain and Latin America and in the United States on Pantaya.

The principal cast members include: Maggie Civantos ("Locked Up," "Malaka") Goya award-nominated Kiti Mánver ("El Inconveniente," "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"), Vicente Romero ("Malaka," "Cell 211") Loreto Mauleón ("Patria"), Esteban Meloni ("Los Internacionales," "Vidas robadas"), Alba Planas ("SKAM"), Ana Marzoa ("Locked Up," "Lifeline"), Omar Banana ("Veneno", "Amor superdotado"), Bernardo Flores ("Women in Charge") and the young actresses Carmen Daza and Manuela Rojas.

Produced by THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO, the eight-episode, one-hour series is scheduled to shoot for 17 weeks on location in and around the city of Madrid.

"Express" tells the story of a criminal psychologist, Bárbara (Maggie Civantos), and her family after she becomes the victim of one of the newest, virally spreading forms of violent crime... express kidnappings. Set in a world where everything moves so quickly that people's capacity to understand and react has been disrupted in ways yet to be fully realized, one group of people knows that unease can be heightened into fear and exploited for profit. Now working as a negotiator in cases similar to her own, Bárbara is on a mission to understand why this happened to her and uncover the people who threatened her life and her family.

"Express" is the first local production from Starzplay, which is creating International Originals through co-production opportunities to further curate its bold and defining offering for subscribers.

Executive producers for THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO are Laura Fdez Espeso, Javier Mendez, Javier Pons and Iván Escobar, as well as Mireia Acosta and Peter Tortorici for Starzplay.

THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO Distribution will manage the series' international sales.

About Starzplay

Starz continues to grow its global footprint with its ongoing expansion of the Starzplay international premium streaming platform. Starzplay's rapid expansion into 50 countries since its launch in May of 2018 is driven by its ability to provide subscribers access to the "best in global SVOD." The content offering is comprised of the entire catalog of STARZ premium content, with upcoming STARZ Originals airing exclusively on Starzplay day-and-date with the US, exclusive award-winning and critically acclaimed first-run series and a vast library of blockbuster feature films. Starzplay is available through the direct to consumer Starzplay App in Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK; on global digital broadcast services, multi-channel video distributors, telecommunications companies and other online and digital platforms including in Europe and Latin America on Apple TV; in Brazil, France, Germany, Mexico and the UK on Amazon Prime Video channels; in the UK, Germany, Spain, France and Italy on Rakuten, in Brazil, Mexico and the UK through Roku TV and streaming devices and on the following local platforms: in Brazil on Claro, in France on Orange, in Mexico on izzi and Totalplay; in Spain on Orange, Vodafone and MasMovil; in Switzerland on UPC TV, in the UK on Virgin Media; and as Starz in Canada in alliance with Bell Media.

About Starzplay

Starz continues to grow its global footprint with its ongoing expansion of the Starzplay international premium streaming platform. Starzplay's rapid expansion into 55 countries since its launch in May of 2018 is driven by its ability to provide subscribers access to the "best in global SVOD." The content offering is comprised of the entire catalog of STARZ premium content, with upcoming STARZ Originals airing exclusively on Starzplay day-and-date with the US, exclusive award-winning and critically acclaimed first-run series and a vast library of blockbuster feature films. Starzplay is available through its direct-to-consumer app in 13 countries and on global digital broadcast services, multi-channel video distributors, telecommunications companies and other online and digital platforms across its footprint spanning across Canada, Europe, India, Japan and Latin America.

About Pantaya

Pantaya is the first-ever premium steaming destination for world-class movies and series in Spanish, offering the largest selection of the biggest blockbusters and critically acclaimed films from Latin America and the US as well as bold never before-seen original series. Pantaya is a joint venture between global content leader Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF. B) and Hemisphere Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: HMTV), which targets the high growth U.S. Hispanic and Latin American markets with leading broadcast, cable television and digital content platforms. To learn more about Pantaya, visit www.pantaya.com.

About THE MEDIAPRO STUDIO

The Mediapro Studio is the content creation, production and distribution factory of the MEDIAPRO Group. The Mediapro Studio is responsible for the implementation of high quality global projects, developed in association with some of the most renowned Spanish and international talents, including Paolo Sorrentino, Woody Allen, Isabel Coixet, Ran Tellem, Oliver Stone, Daniel Burman, Fernando León de Aranoa, Iván Escobar, Javier Fesser, Patricio Guzmán, Borja Cobeaga, Diego San José, Marc Cistaré, Manuel Huerga, Ernesto Daranas, Gastón Duprat, Mariano Cohn, Laura Belloso, Marc Vigil, Fernando González Molina, Javier Olivares and Ruth García, among others. The Mediapro Studio has 58 offices distributed throughout four continents, 14 of which develop and produce content, series productions, films, entertainment programs, short formats and documentaries. The Mediapro Studio works with key global industry operators such as HBO, Netflix, Amazon, DirectTV, Fox, Viacom, Yle and Disney and its productions have won many international awards, including 2 Oscars, 2 Golden Globes, multiple Goya awards and two Daytime Emmy Awards.