CASE CLOSED: "BABYLON BERLIN V" STARTS SHOOTING IN FALL

Berlin/Munich. June 25, 2024. The grand finale awaits: The fifth and final season of the international hit series Babylon Berlin has received the official green light. Set in the darkest period of German history, the new season dives deep into the dreadful February 1933 and its consequences, the transfer of power of the NSDAP. The director/writer trio of Henk Handlogten, Achim von Borries and Tom Tykwer will return for the finale, with Volker Bruch (Generation War) and Liv Lisa Fries (The Wave) reprising their roles of Gereon Rath and Charlotte Ritter as well. Shooting is set for October 2024 for the eight new episodes, which are based on Volker Kutschers fifth novel The March Fallen, pending the approval of the ARD committees.

Babylon Berlin has been sold to more than 140 territories and has celebrated a sweeping success all over the world with more than 94 million digital views on Germany's ARD Mediathek alone. Praised by international media as "One of the best things ever in long-form television" (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL"), "fabulous and stunning" (THE GUARDIAN), "dark, flashy, and addictive" (NPR), and "the most bingeable new drama since 'The Crown'"(VOGUE), the series has turned into the epitome of high-end drama made in Germany with an immense international impact.

Thomas Schreiber, CEO ARD Degeto Film, commented: "Babylon Berlin has set standards and proven: Germany can produce internationally successful series. We at ARD Degeto are pleased that we can deliver on our promise and bring the fans another season - from ARD with SWR, WDR and Radio Bremen, together with our strong partners X Filme and Beta Film. The gripping novel and the terrific cast promise a TV experience that will thrill Babylon Berlin fans once again."

Jan Mojto, CEO Beta Film: "The New York Times recently published the headline, 'Babylon Berlin, Babylon America,' coupled with a call for readers to watch the series to understand the country's developments and the parallels to the Weimar Republic. "Babylon Berlin" is not only impressively topical, but it also resonates with audiences everywhere in the world - on both sides of the Atlantic and in over 140 territories.

"In the final season of BABYLON BERLIN," say the writers and directors of the series, Henk Handloegten, Achim von Borries and Tom Tykwer, "we put February 1933 under the magnifying glass: rarely has a society been torn apart more radically in such a short period of time than Germany in this chaotic month. Not only Gereon Rath and Charlotte Ritter - but all our protagonists also must realize that they only have a few options left: subordinate themselves, risk their lives in open opposition, retreat into inner emigration or flee into exile. However, this decisive month also opens the possibility of changing the course of history at the last second."

X Filme Creative Pool producers Stefan Arndt, Uwe Schott and Michael Polle add: "We would like to thank our partners at ARD and Beta Film for having the courage and trust to bring 'Babylon Berlin' to a real conclusion together with us. Over the many years of this production, the historical past and present have repeatedly intertwined in sometimes frightening ways. We are incredibly grateful that we can now end this cycle with 1933 and show what the end of a democracy looked like. We very much hope that the present won't repeat the new season."

Sophie Burkhardt, Channel Manager ARD Mediathek: "'Babylon Berlin' is and remains one of the most important series brands in and from Germany. With a total of 94 million views in the ARD Mediathek for the four seasons to date and an impressive 23 million views for the fourth season alone, the series has impressively proven that good stories can reach a large audience and inspire them in the long term."

Clemens Bratzler, SWR Program Director: "Babylon Berlin combines relevance with gripping entertainment, and aspiration with popularity. As SWR, we are delighted to make the final season possible together with the other partners, which promises to be another special highlight with the excellent cast and once again great books."

Jörg Schönenborn, ARD Coordinator Fiction: "'Babylon Berlin' ends with this season in one of the most exciting and tragic phases of recent German history. Democracy erodes in just a few weeks without society really understanding what is happening. How else could it be explained that in February 1933 of all months, after a break of several years, carnival is celebrated again on the streets of Cologne. Babylon leaves Berlin, illustrating that democracy has not only died in the capital, but in the whole country."

The series has collected numerous awards, among them the inaugural European Achievement in Fiction Series Award at the European Film Awards, four German Television Awards, the Grand Prize at the Seoul International Drama Awards, the Austrian Television Award ROMY as "TV Event of the Year", the Premios Ondas in Spain, as well as the Magnolia Award of the Shanghai TV Festival, the most important TV festival in Asia, and many more.

Babylon Berlin is a production of X-Filme Creative Pool in co-production with ARD Degeto, SWR, WDR, Radio Bremen and Beta Film. Babylon Berlin is co-produced by Christoph Pellander and Carolin Haasis (ARD Degeto), Manfred Hattendorf and Monika Denisch (SWR), as well as Alexander Bickel and Caren Toennissen-Brand (WDR). Executive producers for X-Filme are Stefan Arndt, Uwe Schott, and Michael Polle, co-producers for Beta Film are Jan Mojto, Dirk Schürhoff, and Moritz Herzogenberg.