East meets West on SBS
Critically acclaimed SBS drama East West 101 is back for its third and final series from April 20. Since the show first aired in 2007, it has received a string of awards, including multiple Logies and AFI’s.
SBS Director of Television and Online Content Matt Campbell told the crowd at the recent season launch that the Sydney-based crime drama had “set a benchmark for dramas” and that the positive reaction to the show confirmed his belief that “the audience wants better, more complex and more authentic drama that reflects the reality of a modern Australia.”
He went on to say that having a Muslim man (Don Hany, pictured, as Detective Zane Malik) playing the ‘hero’ in a post 9/11 environment was “a radical concept”.
Hany, who sent a video message via Los Angeles, told the crowd that the show had been one of the “hardest and most rewarding experiences” of his career.
The show’s producers Kris Wyld and Steve Knapman let the audience know that the show was ending by choice: unlike many other Australian shows that get axed by their networks, they explained that East West 101 was ending at season three as “that is where the story ends.”
Series three of East West 101 will air on SBS One from April 20 at 8.30pm. Take a sneak peek at some of the action from the new season below.
