Kiwi to write, star in HBO-BBC comedy
Matafeo highly excited to be working with team of ‘dreamboats’
Kiwi comedian Rose Matafeo will write and star in a sixpart comedy series jointly produced by the US’ HBO Max and the UK’s BBC Three. According to Deadline, the networks have ordered a comedy titled Starstruck from Matafeo, who won the 2018 Edinburgh Comedy Award and has starred in Funny Girls and the upcoming Kiwi comedy Baby Done.
Starstruck, produced by Last Week Tonight With John Oliver and Avalon Television (Catastrophe), will follow 20-something Rose (Matafeo), a millennial living in London, juggling two jobs and navigating the fallout from accidentally sleeping with a movie star.
BBC Three is the home of shows like Fleabag, Back To Life and People Just Do Nothing, while the new streaming service HBO Max has picked up the rights to British shows such as Doctor Who and Luther.
“The BBC have been so supportive of this project from the get-go and to be able to get this show in front of American audiences at the same time via HBO Max is truly exciting,” Matafeo told Deadline.
“I’m thrilled we get to make it, otherwise it would’ve technically just been a creepy fan-fiction script that I submitted to the national broadcaster. The team we’ve brought together for this series are absolute dreamboats and I’m super excited to be working with them.”
“The minute we were introduced to Rose and Starstruck, we knew we had something special,” said Sarah Aubrey, head of original content at HBO Max. “She is exactly the type of original, culture-forward creator we are excited to be working with at HBO
Max and we are looking forward to a long partnership.”
Shane Allen, BBC’s comedy commissioner, described Matafeo as “fully formed and instantly magnetic”.
“Her assertive millennial female voice is the perfect fit for BBC Three given the strong track record we have in launching sitcoms that speak to a younger audience. Prepare to be utterly enchanted by her winning blend of whip-smart writing and the rich character world she has created.”