Netflix lands global rights to Catan for film and TV slate

Netflix announced on Oct. 22 that it has acquired global rights to Catan and will develop an expanded slate of film and television projects based on the bestselling board game, including live action and animated features as well as scripted and unscripted series. The deal brings production partners Asmodee and Catan Studio together with producers Darren Kyman of Asmodee, Pete Fenlon of Catan Studio, Roy Lee of Vertigo Entertainment, and Guido and Benjamin Teuber, the sons of Catan creator Klaus Teuber.

First published in 1995 as The Settlers of Catan, the strategy game puts players in the roles of settlers who build settlements, trade scarce resources and navigate shifting alliances on a fictional island where robber pieces can block production. The franchise has sold more than 45 million copies worldwide and has been translated into more than 40 languages. Netflix said these projects will mark the first screen adaptations of the Catan property.

Guido and Benjamin Teuber, cochief executives of Catan GmbH, framed the deal as a continuation of the game's original vision. "When our father Klaus Teuber first introduced Catan 30 years ago, he imagined an aspirational world where...