Netflix has announced a slate of Chinese-language films and series, headlined by fantasy series Agent From Above, which the streamer says “boasts extensive visual effects that are seldom seen in a local series”.
Produced with Singapore’s mm2 Entertainment and Taiwan’s Good Films Production, the series is set against an oriental universe of “gods, monsters, humans and ghosts”. The story follows a former drug addict who is recruited to do the bidding of legendary Chinese god San Tai Zi as redemption for his sins.
Taiwanese star Kai Ko heads the cast of the series, which also stars Wang Po-Chieh, Hsueh Shih-ling, Buffy Chen and Johnny Yang. Donnie Lai directs with Good Films’ Rita Chuang as the lead producer.
“We’re committed to investing in and creating high-quality Chinese-language shows that we know will appeal to more audiences in Taiwan and around the world,” said Netflix Chinese-language content manager Jerry Zhang. “We hope our projects will uplift the entertainment industry in Taiwan and introduce local stories to the world through our global platform.”
Netflix has also acquired Hong Kong’s highest-grossing film of all time – sci-fi action drama Warriors Of Future, directed by VFX supremo Ng Yuen-fai and starring Louis Koo, Lau Ching Wan and Carina Lau. The film, which broke records on theatrical release in Hong Kong this summer, will stream on Netflix from December 2.
The streamer’s upcoming Chinese offerings also include Taiwanese LGBTQ+ series The Nipple Talk, which looks at how three friends of different genders and sexual orientation balance love and lust in their quest for a relationship. Produced by Sequoia Entertainment, the series is directed by Lincoln Lai and stars Lin Szu-yu, Bryan Chang, Lu Xia and Kaiser Chuang.
Rounding out the slate are two previously announced thriller mysteries, produced with Taiwan’s Greener Grass Production – Copycat Killer, an adaptation of a Miyabe Miyuki crime novel, and the second season of The Victims’ Game, starring Joseph Chang as a detective with Asperger’s Syndrome, which starts filming next year.
Directed by Chang Jung-chi and Henri Chang, Copycat Killer features an ensemble Taiwanese cast including Wu Kang-ren, Alice Ko, Tuo Tsung-hua and Ruby Lin. It will start streaming on Netflix in the first quarter of 2023.
