Girls’ Generation’s Seohyun and Kim Nam-gil to star in upcoming Netflix original series

NEW YORK -- Korean pop star Luna is ready to make her Broadway debut this fall in the musical "KPOP" and she's already dreaming of who might be there on opening night — like BTS.“I would be thankful if they showed up on opening night,” Luna told The Associated Press through her translator.She also wants fans and other stars to show up, too.“This is New York City, it’s got its own celebrities and also audiences who would enjoy this. So, I would love to see New York celebrities, as well as Hollywood celebrities,” Luna said.Luna was introduced at a press event for the musical Wednesday at the Korean Cultural Center in New York.Luna began her musical career as a member of the popular K-pop group f(x) before becoming a solo artist.

In her television series acting debut, supermodel Bella Hadid has joined the upcoming third season of Hulu comedy Ramy in a recurring role. Details of her character and storyline are being kept under wraps for now. Stay tuned.

The Sound Of Magic is set to hit Netflix this May.Helmed by Itaewon Class and Love In The Moonlight director Kim Sung-youn, The Sound Of Magic is based on a popular webcomic titled Annarasumanara, written and illustrated by Ha Il-kwon.The upcoming series, which premieres on Netflix on May 6, will feature a star-studded cast that includes Hwang In-youp (True Beauty), Ji Chang-wook (The K2, Backstreet Rookie) and Choi Sung-eun (Beyond Evil). The Sound Of Magic is a fantasy series that follows main character Yoon Ah-yi (Choi), a girl who loses her dreams after facing the harsh realities of life, and Na Il-deung (Hwang), who feels immense pressure to bring his dreams to life. The tale begins to unravel after the pair encounter the enigmatic yet mystical magician Rieul (Ji).The Sound Of Magic was first announced in April 2021.

Pachinko star Lee Min-ho is set to star in a new K-drama titled Ask The Stars with Gong Hyo-jin.Earlier today (March 28), South Korean news outlet XSportsNews reported that the Pachinko actor has been cast as the male lead of upcoming romantic-comedy Ask The Stars. Joining him will be actress Gong Hyo-jin, who is known for her roles in hits like Jealousy Incarnate (2016) and When The Camellia Blooms (2019).The upcoming series will revolve round an astronaut and tourist, who meet and fall in love while the latter visits a space station.

Naman Ramachandran Netflix has revealed 40 anime titles that will bow on the service in 2022, including new shows and returning fan favorites. Titles revealed at the AnimeJapan 2022 event include “Thermae Romae Novae,” launching on Monday, which is part of the partnership that the streamer had announced in 2020 with six anime creators.

HYBE Labels subsidiary Source Music has confirmed that its upcoming girl group, which includes former IZ*ONE members Miyawaki Sakura and Kim Chae-won, are set to debut in May.Today (March 21), the agency confirmed to News1 that their next K-pop act are preparing to debut in May. The news comes just a week after Source Music confirmed that it had signed ex-IZ*ONE’s Miyawaki Sakura and Kim Chae-won as members of its upcoming girl group.“The first girl group created under HYBE with Kim Chae-won and Miyawaki Sakura is preparing with an aim to debut in May,” said the agency, as translated by Soompi.

Natalie Portman wears an all red ensemble as she arrives to support the cast at the premiere of Pachinko held at The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on Wednesday (March 16) in Los Angeles.

Rebecca Souw Chinese-owned streaming platform iQiyi added its first Thai original series and two additional shows from Taiwan to its slate of content destined for markets outside mainland China.The additions were revealed Thursday as part of the Hong Kong FilMart rights market being held virtually this year for the third time. The Thai series is “KinnPorsche,” a ‘boys love’ action series starring Mile Phakphum Romsaithong (“Ladytwenty” and “Khamin Rak Kap Poon”) and Apo Nattawin Wattanagitiphat (“Chart Suer Pun Mungkorn” and “Pra Teap Rak Hang Jai”).The Taiwanese productions, “Lesson in Love” and “Oh No! Here Comes Trouble” are both set in high school.

Naman Ramachandran Bollywood royalty Kareena Kapoor Khan leads the cast of Netflix’s Indian adaptation of Japanese author Higashino Keigo’s bestselling 2005 novel “The Devotion of Suspect X.”“Kahaani” filmmaker Sujoy Ghosh will direct. The cast also includes Jaideep Ahlawat (“Paatal Lok”) and Vijay Varma (“Gully Boy”). Ghosh had initially set up the project at Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Telefilms several years ago.

EXCLUSIVE: Saban Films is finalizing a deal to acquire North American rights to Ana Lily Amirpour’s Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon, starring Kate Hudson, breakout Korean actress Jeon Jong-seo and Craig Robinson.

J. Kim Murphy HBO Max has released the trailer for “Tokyo Vice,” offering a first look at the upcoming crime series.

IZ*ONE members Miyawaki Sakura and Kim Chae-won will return as bandmates in Source Music’s as-yet-unnamed new girl group, the entertainment company has confirmed.On March 14, a representative from Source Music shared a statement confirming that the two idols had signed “exclusive contracts with the agency” and would be joining its upcoming girl group. Notably, the label had reportedly signed the two stars as early as last August, though it did not confirm the news at the time.“Miyawaki Sakura and Kim Chae-won have signed exclusive contracts with the agency on the basis of mutual trust.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefIn support of the Disney Plus streaming service, Disney has expanded its involvement in local production in Asia-Pacific. The company’s APAC head of content and development, Jessica Kam-Engle, gives the keynote presentation on the first day of Hong Kong FilMart.Ahead of her speech she gave a few pointers to Variety readers.Jessica Kam-Engle: From our extensive research, consumers across most Asian markets have a strong preference for local language entertainment content.

EXCLUSIVE: Japanese director Hikari is to helm Netflix’s dramedy Beef.