The series was inspired by a tweet Gervais sent to German actor Kida Khodr Ramadan, congratulating the latter on his performance in the show 4 Blocks
Last Updated: 10.30 AM, Nov 26, 2021
In a reversal of the ‘life imitates art’ quote Ricky Gervais’ Twitter adventures has inspired an upcoming television show. The actor-comedian has joined the cast of Greenlight - German Genius, a series born out of a tweet Gervais had sent German actor Kida Khodr Ramadan.
According to Deadline, the upcoming show will star Gervais and Ramadan as fictionalized versions of themselves. The eight-part series is a satire on the TV industry in Germany, and has already started filming in Berlin.
The show drew inspiration from a tweet Gervais had sent to Ramadan two years ago congratulating him on his role in the German drama 4 Blocks. The series will include this interaction into its premise.
Greenlight - German Genius will see Ramadan’s character approach Gervais for obtaining the rights to adapting the latter’s sitcom Extras in German. But Ramadan encounters several snags in the course of trying to get the show up and running. The several problems include difficulty finding international actors to star in the adaptation, the indifference of the German public to comedy television and the inherent hassles of the German TV industry.
The upcoming series is from the producers of 4 Blocks, Warner TV Comedy and W&B Television. In addition to Ramadan and Gervais, the cast also includes popular German stars such as Detlev Buck, Frederick Lau, Tom Schilling, Veysel Gelin, Olli Schulz, Heike Makatsch and Maria Furtwängler, among others.