Bell Media has signed a multi-year deal with Lionsgate to co-develop comedy and drama series for the global market.

Lionsgate will also serve as the global distributor, excluding Canada, for a select number of Bell Media original titles, including anything produced through the co-development deal. Bell Media will hold Canadian distribution rights.

The companies are seeking “unique projects” to “create original Canadian programming that is relevant and relatable to audiences worldwide,” according to a news release.

The agreement, announced Tuesday (Sept. 13), builds on Bell Media’s existing partnership with Lionsgate, including the long-term deal signed in 2018 that saw its subsidiary Starz launch in Canada, with Bell Media’s Crave also picking up the first pay window to Lionsgate’s theatrical releases in Canada.

Lionsgate, which was domiciled in Vancouver before setting up its headquarters in Santa Monica, Calif., continues to work closely in Canada.

The studio holds U.S. and international sales rights to the CBC comedy Son of a Critch; worldwide sales rights to the Citytv original series Wong & Winchester; U.S. distribution rights to Schitt’s Creek; and has partnered with Elevation Pictures and Babe Nation Films to handle international sales for Alice, Darling, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sunday (Sept. 11).

“This agreement allows us to create strategic value by responding to the ever-growing demand for content internationally while building on our position as a top creator and distributor of premium scripted content for the Canadian marketplace,” said Jim Packer, president of worldwide television distribution at Lionsgate, in a statement, who added that Canadian series are “resonating with a global audience.”