Korea’s IMTV Hatches Multi-Season Series Based on Lisa See Novel ‘The Island of Sea Women’ About Matriarchal Society of Free Divers (EXCLUSIVE)

Netflix is staying in the Yeon Sang-ho business, confirming production on his latest creation, The Bequeathed. A suspense drama, it weaves an intricate family history into a subject matter deeply rooted in Korean tradition: family burial grounds. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Band of Brothers” writer Bruce McKenna is teaming with David Broyles (“Six”) and Nick Jones Jr. (“Yasuke”) to write and produce a limited TV series “Buffalo Rangers” about the 2nd Ranger Company, the only all-Black special operations combat unit in U.S. history. They were notable for their efforts in the Korean War. The series is being produced by South Korea-based Moving Pictures Company, which has a growing English-language slate. No broadcaster or streamer has been announced. Producing alongside Broyles, Jones and McKenna are Thomas Suh (through his production company Système D Entertainment), Paul Merryman (“The Outpost”), Debra Martin Chase (“Harriet,” CBS’s “The Equalizer”) and Jariko Denman (“The Outpost”), a retired master sergeant with 15 combat deployments.

MORE: Miranda Kerr photographed with ex Orlando Bloom as they step out for special occasionNever has this felt more apt than with Miranda Kerr. The 39-year-old may have started out walking for the iconic lingerie retailer in 2007, but right now in 2022, she still possesses an air of radiance that is hard to ignore. The model looked utterly stunning on Tuesday as she co-hosted the Curateur Autumnal Supper alongside celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief BTS, the biggest names in K-Pop, announced Monday that they will sign up for Korea’s mandatory military service, with Jin initiating the process at the end of October. The move means that the septet will become temporarily inactive as a group. But, “both the company and the members of BTS are looking forward to reconvening as a group again around 2025 following their service commitment,” said label Bighit Music. “The members of BTS are currently moving forward with plans to fulfill their military service. Group member Jin will initiate the process as soon as his schedule for his solo release is concluded at the end of October. He will then follow the enlistment procedure of the Korean government. Other members of the group plan to carry out their military service based on their own individual plans,” Bighit said in a statement. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief While the Busan International Film Festival was busily hailing a return to normality the slump at South Korea’s commercial box office deepened dramatically over the most recent weekend. Cinemagoing nationwide was worth only $4.20 million between Friday and Sunday, the lowest weekend total since April and a time before Korean cinemas shed their COVID restrictions. The weekend’s top film “Life Is Beautiful” managed the lowest first place score of any film this year, with a weekend haul of just $777,000, according to data from Kobiz, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (KOFIC).

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The free concert by K-pop sensation BTS in Busan, Korea, was viewed by upwards of 49 million people on Saturday. The free-of-charge “BTS ‘Yet to Come’ in Busan” concert was held in support of Busan’s bid to host the 2030 World Expo and represented an attempt to introduce the city and Korean culture to global audience. After a change of venue, the physical component was held at the city’s Asiad Main Stadium and attracted some 50,000 in-person guests. An additional 10,000 people in the city watched a live retransmission at the Busan Port, and a further 2,000 gathered in Haeundae, the tourist area that recently played host to the Busan International Film Festival.

“The Crown.”The upcoming season is expected to follow the Royal Family as they “are presented with possibly their biggest challenge to date, as the public openly question their role in ‘90s Britain,” per the streamer. Part of that, presumably, will be Princess Diana’s separation from Prince Charles and her post-Royal life leading up to her death in 1997.In one of the photos, which you can see above, Debicki leaves a crowded event with a somber look on her face. Surrounded by people, she still seems very alone.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief SM Entertainment, one of the leading agency groups in Korean entertainment, said Friday that it will terminate a contract with Lee Soo-man, a year early, at the end of 2022. “SM Entertainment [..] will sever ties with its chief producer Lee Soo-man at the end of this year,” Yonhap news agency reported on Friday. Lee was one of the key figures in the early discovery of Korean pop talent in the mid-1990s, developing the agency system that has hatched numerous idol groups, and has remained one of the biggest executive names in the K-pop business. The four leading agencies are brand names in their own right, organize concerts for their stables of performers, and maintain a far more visible presence than music management firms in most other countries.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Korean film “A Wild Roomer” and India’s “Shivamma” have been announced as the joint winners of the New Currents competition, the prestige discovery section of the Busan International Film Festival. “We were particularly sensitive to the lightness and subtlety of the director’s view of his characters. Through his innovative cinematography, he creates original circulations between the characters within a house, and builds a very contemporary universe,” the competition jury said of the Lee Jeon-hong-directed “A Wild Roomer.” “We appreciated the originality and intensity with which the director was able to tell this very contemporary story. Here documentary and fiction meet in an organic and spirited way of making cinema. The generosity of the actors and the scenes create a closeness with this universal story that takes place in an Indian village,” the jury said of the Jaishankar Aryar-directed “Shivamma.”

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Village Roadshow Television has acquired the rights to Lana Harper’s novel “Payback’s a Witch” with the intention of developing it onto a TV series, Variety has learned exclusively. The book is the first installment in Harper’s “Witches of Thistle Grove” novel series, with the planned show set to take that name as well. Per the official logline, “Witches of Thistle Grove” is “a show about Emmy Harlow, a young woman with big dreams who abandoned her charming but podunk hometown to prove herself in the big city. When she’s suddenly called home nine years later to fulfill a family obligation — which, okay, happens to be arbitrating a centuries-old gauntlet — she’s forced to confront family rifts, broken friendships, and Gareth Blackmoore — a detestable but Hot AF ex who broke her heart and, it turns out, also screwed her friends: Her childhood bestie Linden Thorn, and the sexy, dangerous Talia Avramov, a bad-ass that Emmy always crushed on from afar. Reframing old friendships, reconciling with family, and enacting revenge are things Emmy used to hide from. But if she can face her fears, she can take her power back. And that’s critical. Because Emmy Harlow is a witch.”

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Future Laobans,” a project directed by Maung Sun and produced by Maung Sun and Ma Aeint, claimed the Busan Prize, the top award at the Asian Project Market, on Tuesday. The awards were made at an event held at the Paradise Hotel in Busan’s Haeundae district at the end of three days of quick-fire meetings between producers and directors and an array of potential co-producers, financiers and distributors. Organizers said that they put together 705 such one-on-one meetings. The CJ ENM Award went to Indonesia’ “Gaspar,” to be directed by Yosep Anggi Noen and produced by Yulia Evina Bhara and Cristian Imanueli.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Vought International has two new hires to boast about: Supes Firecracker and Sister Sage made their epic debut Monday in two first-look photos from “The Boys” Season 4 revealed by Amazon’s Prime Video. In the photos, which you can view at the bottom of this post, you’ll see Susan Heyward suit up as Sister Sage and Valorie Curry rocking her Firecracker costume. Both of the supersuits were designed by Laura Jean Shannon, “The Boys” costume designer who styled Jensen Ackles’ fan-favorite Soldier Boy look for Season 3. Fans will want to pick the details of these costumes apart as much as possible, because Amazon says that everything else about the Firecracker and Sister Sage characters “will be kept under wraps until the season airs.” While we don’t know when that will be just yet, we do know “The Boys” Season 4 is currently in production in Toronto — so stay tuned.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Comedy action film “Confidential Assignment 2: International” claimed its fifth successive weekend victory at the South Korean box office as only U.S. horror film “Smile” was able to break into the top five.The CJ Entertainment-distributed “Confidential Assignment 2” managed $1.64 million over the Friday to Sunday period, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). That represented a 27% share of the market. “Confidential Assignment 2” recorded a 27% weekend on weekend decline. That pushed its cumulative total to $47 million, earned form $6.52 million ticket sales since release on Set. 7, 2022.

FX’s Kindred, the new drama series based on Octavia E. Butler’s novel, will premiere Tuesday, December 13 exclusively on Hulu. The premiere will include all eight episodes. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Japan’s Toei Animation and Korea’s CJ ENM unveiled a volley of new projects on Saturday flowing from their previously-established cooperation pact. The new shows include: a series that will be produced in both live action and animated formats; a live action series; and a third animation series. “The genesis of this co-operation was the notion that we should play to the strengths of Korean content and Japanese animation,” said Yi Jongmin, the CJ executive who heads the joint venture’s shared control unit. “That was before we factor in language barriers and cultural differences and suffered the disruptions of the COVID pandemic.”

Prime Video has dropped the first look at the upcoming season of The Wheel of Time, and in it, fans will get their first look at the new Mat.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Korean sales agent Finecut has added “Secret: Untold Melody” and “The Dinner” to its burgeoning Asian Contents & Film Market slate. Both titles are sourced from a deal with Hive Media Corp. (“Inside Men,” “The Man Standing Next”). An adaptation of 2007 Taiwan hit “Secret,” “Secret: Untold Melody” is a romance film about pianist and a student. While the original film starred Jay Chou and Gwei Lun-mei, the Korean retread stars Doh Kyung-soo (a.k.a D.O. from celebrated K-pop group EXO) who has acting credits including “Swing Kids” and the “Along With The Gods” franchise, and rising star Won Jin-a (“Netflix’s “Hellbound”). Now in post-production, the film is directed by Seo You-min (“Recalled”).

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Japanese director Miike Takashi, who is known for slasher film “Ichi The Killer” and stomach-churning “Audition,” Friday claimed that he does not like bloody horror scenes. “I’m not a fan of bloody scenes. But that’s what I’m known for. And it is what I get offered. It’s what I was offered by [Korean TV studio] Studio Dragon,” said Miike at a press event in Busan to launch his new genre series “Connect.” The show premieres in the Busan International Film Festival’s series section and will release as a Star Original on the Disney+ streaming service.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Korean sales firm, Finecut is using the Asian Contents & Film Market on the sidelines of the Busan International Film Festival to launch comic action film “Brave Citizen.” The film, now in post-production, is an adaptation of a webtoon which ranked first in popularity when it was serialized on the platform Comico. It was later serialized on another Korean platform Naver Webtoon and recorded 2.27 million views on its Line Webtoon platform in Taiwan. It tells the tale of female former boxing champion who has become a substitute high school teacher. Having witnessed intolerable violence, she dons a mask and throws her first punch for justice.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Manta Comics is to release a webcomic adaptation of “A Hard Day,” a Korean action thriller film from 2014 originally directed by Kim Seong-hun. In Manta’s adaptation, the protagonist Ko Gunsoo has been recreated as a female detective, and the story begins when she accidentally hits a homeless person with her car shortly after her mother’s death. Unwilling to catch a manslaughter charge, Gunsoo hides the body in her mother’s casket. A mysterious stranger soon arrives, claiming knowledge of the hit-and-run, and Gunsoo finds herself embroiled in a shady police corruption scandal.  The 2014 movie was produced by AD406 and distributed internationally by Showbox / Mediaplex.