Disney+ finally reveals its first-ever Canadian originals

Disney+ has announced its first-ever local Canadian original titles and teased its initial two projects from the initiative.

The first is an eight-episode scripted comedy called Knighted from Heavy Lifting Productions in association with 3 Arts Entertainment that follows the absurd documentary-style investigation into a missing person’s case at a medieval theatre. The series was created by Jackson Rowe and Mike Mildon (CBC’s For Heaven’s Sake) and is executive produced by Bruce McCulloch of the popular Canadian comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall.

The second Canadian original is I’m Not Coming Back, a three-part true crime docuseries produced by Tuck Shop Media and Hodgee Films. It examines the story of one of Canada’s largest manhunts for two armed fugitives in Manitoba and the aid provided to authorities by a member of Fox Lake Cree Nation. The series hails from producer Joe Tuck (Running Smoke) and director Brent Hodge (I Am Chris Farley).

Given that these titles are only just getting the greenlight, it’s not yet clear when they will enter production and ultimately premiere on Disney+. It also remains to be seen what else will come out of Disney’s original Canadian productions. Still, it’s a notable change for the company, especially since other foreign streamers like Amazon and Netflix have been investing in their own original Canadian content over the past few years. Historically, Disney has gotten by on the admittedly loose definition of “Canadian content,” touting titles like Turning Red, Ms. Marvel and She-Hulk which feature key Canadian creative talent but are otherwise wholly American productions.

News of these first-ever Disney+ Canadian originals comes after Disney tapped former CBC exec Paige Murray in December to lead its Canadian content strategy. It also notably follows the federal government’s recent announcement of — and, reportedly, subsequent plans to rescind — a tripled Canadian content investment requirement for foreign streamers like Disney+. This came after intense pushback from the Motion Picture Association (MPA), which represents companies like Disney, Amazon’s Prime Video and Netflix.

Earlier this week, The Globe and Mail reported that the Canadian government is aware that this is a major irritant in its ongoing trade negotiations with the U.S. and is looking into a “more reasonable rate” of foreign streamers’ contribution to Canadian programming. The government had previously said it expected this increased contribution requirement to result in $2 billion in additional funding for Canadian and Indigenous content, including French-language programming. It also committed to investing $600 million annually into Canada’s cultural sectors.