The UK launch date of Paramount Plus has finally been unveiled.
The streaming service has been live since March 2021 in the US and has thus far been rolled out across Latin America, Canada, Australia, and Nordic countries like Norway, Sweden, and Finland. It has previously been confirmed that the service would arrive in the UK this year, but the only indication of when was "summer". Now, however, summer has a date and it is June 22.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the launch date was confirmed on a call with investors earlier today (May 3) where it was also outlined that the service will be launching in India in 2023.
By the end of 2022, Paramount has stated it hopes its service will be in 60 countries. It ended 2021 with 32.8 million subscribers, and the company is aiming to hit 100 million by 2024, allowing it to compete with Netflix, HBO Max, and Disney Plus.
In terms of the streamer's existing library, it's not yet clear what content will be made available on the European version of the service since many of the best Paramount Plus shows (like The Good Fight or Star Trek: Picard) currently have deals in place with other UK providers like Channel 4 and Prime Video.
The service will be available to access on desktop browser, mobiles, TVs and via the Paramount Plus app. As well as this, the streaming service will also be available on Sky platforms in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany and Austria in 2022. Sky Cinema subscribers will get Paramount Plus included at no extra cost.
As for prices, you'll be able to purchase the service will cost £6.99 per month or £69.90 for the year, with a free seven-day trial available.
What will Paramount Plus be bringing with it?
Among the streaming service's European projects are a team-up with Hans Rosenfeldt, creator of The Bridge and Marcella, who has been snared to create a new drama. He will adapt The Burning Girls, a CJ Tudor novel about a village haunted by a dark past.
British acting legend Kenneth Branagh is is booked to lead a starry adaptation of A Gentleman in Moscow, which is based on the Amor Towles novel of the same name. A period drama set in 1922 at the height of communism, Branagh will play Count Alexander Rostov who, after being named an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, is put on trial.
In addition, a TV remake of Sexy Beast, Jonathan Glazer's classic British drama which starred Ray Winstone and Ben Kingsley as warring veteran criminals, is coming, too.
Paramount's service will also arrive with a host of in-depth documentaries, including a lavish look at fashion houses Gucci, Versace, and Burberry.
If you want more information on Paramount Plus, we've collated it all here for you.
