Stan revives McLeod's Daughters and orders slate of new Australian series
Stan is bringing back McLeod's Daughters, 25 years after the outback drama left Australian screens.
The streamer has ordered a revival of the Nine Network early-2000s drama about sisters who take over a cattle ranch in South Australia, according to Deadline. It will be produced by Werner Film Productions, which is backed by BBC Studios. The world was created by Posie Graeme-Evans across 224 episodes.
That order, meaning a series approved straight for production, headlines a broad slate of Australian commissions.
Stan has also greenlit Slander, a legal drama about defamation law co-created by and starring Rachel Griffiths. Griffiths plays a defamation lawyer. She was seen sitting in on the Cate Sayers court case in Melbourne in May to research the role, according to the Herald Sun.
Slander was co-created by Griffiths with Marieke Hardy and is produced by Blackfella Films with Screen Australia involvement. Anne Renton will direct. Production is starting in Melbourne.
The cast is set. Joining Griffiths are Jessica De Gouw, Max Beesley, Roxie Mohebbi, David Berry, Doris Younane and Lincoln Younes.
Stan has also ordered Stuck Up & Stupid, an adaptation of the BookTok novel by Angourie Rice and Kate Rice. BookTok, meaning books that find readers through TikTok recommendations, powered the original release. The show is billed as a reimagining of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice set on the Australian coast and in Hollywood.
It is a co-production, meaning made jointly by companies in different markets, with CBS Studios. Rice stars alongside Brendon Tremblay, Yvonne Strahovski, Brooke Satchwell, Julia Morris, Luke Carroll, Raff Law and Hannah Gadsby.
There is a return too. Anna Friel will be back as Dr Gloria Wall in The F Ward Season 2. The season follows medical interns sent to the underfunded Pines Hospital in Sydney for a final chance to complete their training.
Elsewhere, Jacki Weaver has joined Sheridan Smith in Two Birds, a co-production with Britain's ITV. Weaver replaces Judy Davis, who exited due to scheduling conflicts, to play Mrs Baxter. The series is shooting in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia.
Comedian Hamish Blake is lining up Unskilled Adult for Stan. No plot details were disclosed.
What makes this stand out is range. One slate covers a cattle-station revival, a courtroom drama, a hospital return, a coastal romance and a goldfields shoot. For viewers, that means new local stories arriving across drama and comedy rather than a single bet.
