PEACOCK ANNOUNCES US STRAIGHT-TO-SERIES ORDER OF ANCIENT ROME GLADIATORIAL EPIC "THOSE ABOUT TO DIE" WITH INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED FILMMAKER ROLAND EMMERICH SET TO DIRECT

High End Productions To Co-Commission The Series With Peacock

Series Comes From Studio AGC Television With Centropolis Entertainment, Hollywood Gang, And Street Entertainment Producing

Series is Inspired by the Non-fiction Classic Those About To Die by Acclaimed Author Daniel Mannix with Robert Rodat Set to Write and Executive Produce

www.PeacockTV.com

· Peacock announced today the straight-to-series US order for THOSE ABOUT TO DIE, a large scale Ancient Rome gladiatorial epic inspired by the nonfiction classic Those About To Die from acclaimed author Daniel Mannix and internationally renowned filmmaker Roland Emmerich (Moonfall, Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow) is set to direct and executive produce.

· High End Productions, the company set up by Herbert G. Kloiber and Constantin Film to produce premium European fiction series for the international market, also confirmed that it has acquired distribution rights in Europe and is set to co-finance the show with Peacock.

· In addition to Emmerich who is executive producing through his company Centropolis Entertainment, Academy Award nominated screenwriter Robert Rodat (Saving Private Ryan, The Patriot) will write and executive produce. Hollywood Gang's Gianni Nunnari (The Departed, 300) and Street Entertainment's Harald Kloser (2012, Independence Day: Resurgence, Midway) will executive produce alongside High End's Oliver Berben, Herbert G. Kloiber, Martin Moszkowicz, and Jonas Bauer. AGC CEO Stuart Ford and Chief Content Officer Lourdes Diaz also executive produce.

· AGC International, the content licensing and distribution arm of AGC Studios and sister company to the show's studio AGC Television, will handle worldwide distribution rights outside of the HEP European footprint.

· THOSE ABOUT TO DIE is a large-scale drama set within the spectacular, complex, and corrupt world of gladiatorial sports in Ancient Rome. The series introduces an ensemble of diverse characters across the many layers of Roman society where sports, politics, and business intersect and collide.

· "Those About To Die takes on Ancient Rome in a completely new way. While the series will be epic in scope and have the spectacle of gladiators and chariot racing, it also has unexpected characters amidst palace intrigue and a dark criminal underworld," said Lisa Katz, president scripted content, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. "We jumped at the opportunity to partner with the unmatched creative minds of Roland Emmerich, Robert Rodat, Harald Kloser, AGC Studios and Gianni Nunnari's Hollywood Gang, to create this bold, action-packed series for Peacock audiences."

· Said HEP's Oliver Berben and Herbert G. Kloiber, "The first TV show created by Roland Emmerich with an exceptional story and a perspective never seen before - that's exactly why we founded High End Productions: A European story that can be seen around the world. We are very grateful and excited that we have found such great partners and creative minds for this extraordinary project."

· Director Roland Emmerich stated, "The powerful Roman Empire has always fascinated me, especially its enormous games which entertained the masses through spectacle at the monumental Colosseum. At its heart, this is a sports epic led by strong and diverse characters who explore paths to glory, falls from grace and a need to belong to something greater than oneself. Sports in these ancient times were as thrilling and massive then as they are today, and I'm excited to collaborate with my partners, Peacock, High End Productions, Hollywood Gang, and AGC Studios, in bringing this rich world of blood, sweat and tears to television."

ABOUT THE SERIES:

Director / Executive Producer: Roland Emmerich (Moonfall, Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow)

Writer / Executive Producer: Robert Rodat (Saving Private Ryan, The Patriot)

Executive Producers: Harald Kloser (Independence Day: Resurgence, Midway), Gianni Nunnari (The Departed, 300)), Oliver Berben, Herbert G. Kloiber, Martin Moszkowicz, Jonas Bauer, Stuart Ford, Lourdes Diaz

Studio: AGC Studios

Produced By: Centropolis Entertainment, Hollywood Gang Productions and Street Entertainment

Distributor: AGC International

Format: Drama Series

About Peacock

Peacock is NBCUniversal's streaming service. Peacock delivers a world-class slate of exclusive originals, on-demand libraries of hit TV shows, plus critically acclaimed films from the vaults of Universal Pictures, Focus Features, DreamWorks Animation, Illumination, and Hollywood's biggest studios. In addition, Peacock taps into NBCUniversal's unmatched ability to deliver a broad range of compelling topical content across news, sports, late-night, Spanish-language, and reality. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.

About ROLAND EMMERICH & CENTROPOLIS ENTERTAINMENT

Centropolis Entertainment is the film and television production company of international filmmakers, renowned director/producer/screenwriter Roland Emmerich and his sister, producer Ute Emmerich. In 2017, the company significantly expanded its scope beyond traditional producing in order to own its original intellectual property. Beginning with the recent WWII action epic Midway, which has grossed almost $140 million worldwide to date, Centropolis raises all of its funding independently and oversees all aspects of development, production, financing, delivery, and distribution and marketing with its U.S. and international partners. The science fiction epic, Moonfall, was the second feature film produced under this model. In 2019, Roland Emmerich received the Honorary Award for career achievement from the Bavarian Film Awards, the most highly regarded accolades for filmmaking in his home country of Germany. In 2020, the Visual Effects Society (VES) bestowed its Visionary Award to him at its annual gala. Since Centropolis' inception in 1985, its 30 films - including Independence Day, Stargate, Godzilla, The Patriot, The Day After Tomorrow, 2012, White House Down, Midway and Moonfall - have grossed more than $4 billion worldwide.

About AGC STUDIOS

Since its launch in 2018 Stuart Ford's AGC Studios has enjoyed explosive growth and is already well established as one of the most prolific and diversified independent content companies in the industry. AGC Television's Emmy nominated THE TINDER SWINDLER from Gaspin Media is Netflix's most watched documentary ever and the first to top Netflix's list of its most popular films worldwide. In addition, AGC TV recently completed TROPPO in partnership with Australia's ABC and Amazon's FreeVee in the US and Leonine internationally, and Seasons 1 & 2 of WAR OF THE WORLDS for EPIX, with production ongoing for Season 3. Upcoming shows include an adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez's NEWS OF A KIDNAPPING for Amazon Originals; Sebastian Gutierrez's LEOPARD SKIN starring Carla Gugino and Jeffrey Dean Morgan for Peacock T+ in the U.S. and Lionsgate Television internationally; and GRAY starring Patricia Clarkson and Lydia West for Lionsgate Television and Night Train Media internationally. Films in post include Christian Ditter's family comedy THE PRESENT starring Isla Fisher and Greg Kinnear; Christopher Smith's supernatural thriller CONSECRATION starring Jena Malone and Danny Huston; and Pierre Morel's action-comedy FREELANCE staring John Cena, Alison Brie and Juan Pablo Raba. Chris Pine's directorial debut POOLMAN starring Pine, Annette Bening, Danny DeVito, DeWanda Wise and Jennifer Jason Leigh is currently shooting in Los Angeles; THE DATING GAME starring Anna Kendrick begins late summer; and Richard Linklater's HITMAN starring Glen Powell and Adria Arjona is prepping for an October start. AGC's completed films include WATCHER, the acclaimed Sundance and SXSW debut from Chloe Okuno; Roland Emmerich's MOONFALL and MIDWAY; Neil Burger's VOYAGERS; Tate Taylor's BREAKING NEWS IN YUBA COUNTY; and Doug Liman's LOCKED DOWN.

ABOUT STREET ENTERTAINMENT

Street Entertainment is the film and television production company founded by Harald Kloser in 2009. Kloser started his career as a film composer (Alien v. Predator, Day After Tomorrow), before expanding into screenwriting and producing, where his first two scripts,10,000 BC and 2012, grossed over $1 billion in worldwide box office. Other notable producing credits alongside Roland Emmerich's Centropolis Entertainment include Independence Day: Resurgence, Midway and most recently the science fiction epic, Moonfall. The concept of looking at the dirty business behind the infamous Roman games first originated at Street Entertainment, which brought Those About to Die to producing partners Roland Emmerich, Gianni Nunnari and AGC Studios. It marks Street Entertainment's the first major foray into the world of serial television.

About HOLLYWOOD GANG

Hollywood Gang is the Los Angeles-based production company helmed by Gianni Nunnari. Its slate encompasses film, television, and Broadway with a focus on championing unique creative visions and giving worldwide audiences content that they have never seen before. The company is producing the live-action adaptation of the beloved anime ROBOTECH for Sony Pictures, to be directed by Rhys Thomas (HAWKEYE, DOCUMENTARY NOW!, SNL). Further upcoming projects include a docu-series on the renowned chef and hotelier Nobu Matsuhisa, directed by documentarian Matt Tyrnauer (VALENTINO: THE LAST EMPEROR, STUDIO 54) in co-production with AGC, and ARMY OF STRANGERS - a television series about the notorious French Foreign Legion - helmed by Matthew Parkhill (DEEP STATE, ROGUE), in co-production with Vertigo Films.

About HIGH END PRODUCTIONS

High End Productions is a company that specializes in international high end television series with a European DNA, with a particular focus on co-productions for European and international networks. The company was founded by Herbert G. Kloiber and Constantin Film in June 2021. Amongst other projects, High End Productions is currently developing a limited series about "Maximilian and Carlota" of Mexico with William Boyd.