Banijay Entertainment is going back to a proven Brazilian IP partner. Its scripted label A Fábrica will adapt Raphael Montes’s Jabuti Prize-winning novel Uma Mulher no Escuro (A Woman in the Dark) into a series for Globoplay.
The commission was developed with Casa Montes, the author’s studio, and is expected to be unveiled at Banijay’s fiction-strategy spotlight during Iberseries & Platino Industria in Madrid on Sept. 30.
The plot and the prize
The novel follows Victoria Bravo, a woman who saw her family murdered as a child. Two decades later, while trying to rebuild her life, she becomes convinced the killer is back—and those closest to her turn into suspects.
The book has the credentials to anchor a premium campaign: it won the Jabuti Literary Prize for Best Entertainment Novel. Montes’s books have sold more than a million copies worldwide and have been published in more than 25 countries.
A repeat IP relationship, not a one-off
What makes the greenlight notable is the pattern behind it. Montes is already behind Netflix’s Good Morning, Verônica and Globoplay’s Perfect Days, and he recently worked with A Fábrica on Netflix’s A Estranha na Cama.
Simone Oliveira, director of development and new business at A Fábrica, framed the deal around talent relationships: “This commission reflects the value in nurturing talent relationships and collaborating once again with Raphael Montes.” The idea, she said, is “uniting prestigious literary IP with high-end storytelling to deliver Globoplay’s next hit.”
For buyers and planners, that turns an author into a renewable pipeline. One commission is a bet on a story; repeated commissions across Netflix and Globoplay are a bet on an IP engine with a track record.
Why A Fábrica can pitch it
A Fábrica has data to back the pitch. Its Netflix drama Desperate Lies (Pedaço de Mim) spent six weeks in the platform’s Global Top 10. Since 2016, the label says it has developed more than 30 projects spanning over 800 episodes, moving from features and series into newer formats such as microdrama.
Banijay Entertainment itself is a scale player: it describes itself as Europe’s number-one scripted studio and a leading supplier to global streamers, launching more than 140 scripted titles and producing over 1,800 hours of scripted content annually.
- Montes’s books: 1M+ copies sold, published in 25+ countries
- Recent proof: Desperate Lies spent six weeks in Netflix’s Global Top 10
- A Fábrica since 2016: 30+ projects, 800+ episodes
What this means for media plans
The greenlight is a signal that local-language literary IP is no longer just a local play. Globoplay gets a premium crime title built on an author with cross-platform heat; Banijay gets another adaptation it can position for regional and global buyers.
For entertainment marketers, the lesson is to treat proven creators as franchise assets. Track repeat collaborations, award history, sales data, and prior streaming performance before a title is announced. That is where a campaign angle is hiding.
Source: Variety
