Broadchurch (ITV/BBC America) was my favorite television show, specifically crime drama, in 2013. FOX is remaking the series but changed the name to Gracepoint. Interestingly, they cast David Tennant, the male lead DI Alec Hardy in Broadchurch, as the male lead/character equivalent in Gracepoint, Emmett Carter.
I've watched plenty of foreign shows and at least see trailers for their American remakes, but have never encountered this practice. Has this been done before? Is it common?