Guy Ritchie to Direct a ‘Ray Donovan’ Spinoff ‘The Donovans’ for Paramount+

Paramount+ has ordered a spinoff of its crime drama Ray Donovan that will be directed and executive produced by Guy Ritchie.

Titled The Donovans, the new series is “loosely based” on the successful series that ran for seven seasons on Showtime and starred Liev Schreiber as a professional “fixer” in Los Angeles.

The official description: “With the most powerful clients in Europe, The Donovans will see family fortunes and reputations at risk, odd alliances unfold, and betrayal around every corner; and while the family might be London’s most elite fixers today, the nature of their business means there is no guarantee what’s in store tomorrow.”

Award-winning Irish writer Ronan Bennett (Top Boy) will write all 10 episodes. “We’re going to deliver a show which provides massive thrills, entertainment and a huge rush of adrenaline for audiences around the world,” Bennett said. “At the same time, I’m totally focused on exploring real characters, in body and in soul, and I’m committed to writing stories with deep dramatic impact. We’re going to get under the skin of the criminal underworld, in a way which will show you the bone-deep truths of how they live and how it sometimes will — inevitably — impact on our own lives.”

Added Chris McCarthy, president of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios: “Guy Ritchie and Ronan Bennett are the ideal dream-team to create a new global hit franchise with The Donovans. Guy’s riveting and stylish directorial approach combined with Ronan’s captivating and brutally authentic writing will transfix audiences into a wild and twisted world full of new adventures.”

For Ritchie (The Covenant), the move represents another step into the TV world following his new Netflix series The Gentlemen. Both Gentlemen and The Donovans have storylines that center around Ritchie’s signature storytelling strength — London-based crime dramas (in films like Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels).

The Donovans will premiere on Paramount+ later this year. The series is executive produced by Richie, Bennett, David C. Glasser, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, David Hutkin and Ivan Atkinson.