TORONTO and WASHINGTON, DC – Canada’s own red-haired orphan Ann Shirley is heading Stateside after Breakthrough Entertainment inked an all-rights broadcast deal with PBS for the rebooted version of Anne of Green Gables.
Directed by John Kent Harrison and based on the original script by Susan Coyne, this adaptation was filmed in Canada and stars Martin Sheen as Matthew Cuthbert, one half of the brother-sister couple that cares for Anne, Canadian actress Sara Botsford as Marilla Cuthbert, and 13-year old newcomer Ella Ballentine as Anne Shirley. Anne of Green Gables will air nationally on PBS stations on November 24 at 8:00 PM ET as a special Thanksgiving family television event.
“Anne Shirley is the most widely-known fictional character in Canadian literary history,” said Nat Abraham, partner and president of distribution at Breakthrough Entertainment, in the news release. “We’re thrilled to be working with PBS to bring this classical story to American audiences as well.”
“The story and Anne character have become a staple of childhood innocence and inspiration”, added Michael Kelley, SVP programming & business affairs for PBS. “Breakthrough’s revival of this globally recognized literary story has delighted so many viewers in Canada and around the world and we are glad to secure this film for broadcast on PBS.”
The film was produced by Breakthrough Entertainment in association with Corus Entertainment's YTV and the author's granddaughter, Kate Macdonald Butler, who served as executive producer.
Based on Lucy Maud Montgomery’s classic novel, L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables tells the story of Anne Shirley, a precocious little girl taken from an orphanage, and placed in the care of the uptight Marilla Cuthbert and her brother Matthew. Although Marilla comes from the conservative mindset versus the adventurous Anne, neither character would anticipate the profound effect they’re about to have on each other’s lives.
