First TV Series About Benjamin Netanyahu, ‘Bibi,’ to Be Penned by Emmy-Winning Writer

Shiryn Ghermezian

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands next to his wife Sara as he waves to supporters following the announcement of exit polls in Israel’s election at his Likud party headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel, March 3, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen.

Two-time Emmy Award-winning screenwriter Kirk Ellis has been signed by the global production and distribution company Fremantle to write the screenplay for the new TV series “Bibi,” based on the political and personal life of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Ellis, also a Writers Guild Award and Humanitas Prize winner, is best known for adapting for HBO David McCullough’s biography John Adams, which won a record-breaking 13 Emmy Awards in a single year. His many other credits include “Anne Frank: The Whole Story” for ABC, which he received an Emmy nomination for.

“Bibi” will be the first TV series about the life of Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, who has been in office since 2009.

The show is being produced by the Tel Aviv-based TV production company Abot Hameiri, most popularly known for producing the Israeli series “Shtisel.” It will be based on Israeli journalist Ben Caspit’s best-selling biography The Netanyahu Years.

“Benjamin Netanyahu is one of the most complex figures in modern history,” said Ellis. “His is a life lived on a Shakespearean scale. Ben Caspit’s insightful reporting demonstrates how private life always shapes public affairs, and there’s no shortage of conflict — or opinions — when it comes to Benjamin Netanyahu. I’m thrilled and honored to be working with Guy and the entire Abot Hameiri team to bring this story to life.”

Abot Hameiri stated that “Bibi” would be “an epic political story with a very big philosophical and psychological undertone,” adding, “At the same time, it will be a scandalous family melodrama that explores how the personal can become political, and vice versa.”

Guy Hameiri, co-founder of Abot Hameiri, said, “the series is the biggest IP we can deliver out of Israel today to the world, and with Kirk’s esteemed catalogue of work, particularly in exploring the lives of high-profile figures, it makes him a perfect addition to this series looking at one of the most influential figures in modern geo-politics.”