My fellow Canadians, the time has come for someone to tell the story of The Great Canadian Maple Heist! Have your pancakes and waffles ready because things are about to get delectably dangerous on Amazon. Based on actual events, The Sticky revolves around Ruth Clarke, a rugged, supremely competent middle-aged Canadian maple syrup farmer who’s had it with being hemmed in by the polite, bureaucratic conventions native to her country’s identity. Especially now that that very bureaucracy is threatening to take away everything she loves: Her farm, her comatose husband, and her right to manifest destiny. With the help of Remy Bouchard, a pint-sized local blockhead, and an aging Mike Byrne, a low-level mobster, Ruth changes her fate—and transforms the future of her community with the theft of millions of dollars worth of maple syrup.
The actual heist saw $18 million worth of Quebec’s national maple syrup, which is more than 70% of the global maple syrup supply, stolen. Who would dare? Maple syrup practically flows through my veins, man!
“We are thrilled to be working with this incredible lineup of talent behind the scenes to bring this story to life,” said Christina Wayne, head of Canadian Originals at Amazon Studios. “The Amazon Studios team in Canada couldn’t resist these characters, and a story centered around delicious stolen goods is perfect for our Prime Video audience.”
Brian Donovan and Ed Herro wrote the pilot and will executive produce and co-showrun with Canadian co-showrunner and executive producer Kathryn Borel. Jonathan Levine will direct and executive produce through Megamix with Gillian Bohrer. Jamie Lee Curtis will executive produce via Comet Pictures. Josée Vallée and Bruno Dubé executive produce for Sphere Media Inc, with Jason Blum, Chris McCumber, and Jeremy Gold executive producing for Blumhouse Television. Russell Goldman is an associate producer via Comet Pictures.
“This story, about an unassuming band of renegades who managed to pull off perhaps the largest heist in Canadian history, caught our attention immediately,” said Donovan, Herro, and Borel. “The characters, stakes—all were ripe for tapping (pun intended) for our fictional story. We’re thrilled that we have world-class partners on board to bring our vision for ‘The Sticky’ to life.”
It is so on-brand that Canada’s most significant theft involves our sweet maple syrup. When you’re born in Canada, the hospital issues you a birth certificate, your first pair of hockey skates, and a Maple leaf-shaped jar of the sticky-icky. It’s true. Look it up. Wait, don’t look it up. I’m just having some fun, eh?
I say bring on The Sticky and thank you to Jamie Lee Curtis for helping to make this happen. You’ve always been one of my favorites.
Variety was the first to report today’s news about The Sticky.