City Hong Kong Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Imax Corp. is planning to acquire full control of its China subsidiary, the company announced Wednesday.

Coco Lee, who had a highly successful career in Asia, has died by suicide at the age of 48.In a post on Lee’s official Facebook page, her two elder sisters Carol and Nancy Lee shared that the singer had been battling depression for several years. “CoCo had been suffering from depression for a few years but her condition deteriorated drastically over the last few months,” the statement read.It continued: “Although CoCo sought professional help and did her best to fight depression, sadly that demon inside of her took the better of her.”The sisters shared that Lee attempted to take her life at home over the weekend and was rushed to a hospital.

Coco Lee, a Hong Kong-born singer and songwriter who had a highly successful career in Asia, has died by suicide, her siblings said Wednesday. She was 48.

the Facebook post stated. “Although, CoCo sought professional help and did her best to fight depression, sadly that demon inside of her took the better of her.” The Hong Kong-born singer-songwriter moved to the US when she was 9 years old and eventually returned to her home state where she launched her music career.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Coco Lee, a Hong Kong-born singer and songwriter, has died at age 48. She had a career of some 30 years, which included providing the voice of the heroine Mulan in the Mandarin-language version of Disney’s “Mulan.” Lee’s sisters, Carol and Nancy Lee, said in a statement on Facebook and Instagram that Coco had attempted suicide at home on Sunday. She was in a coma since that point and died on Wednesday at Hong Kong’s Queen Mary Hospital. “With great sadness, we are here [to] break the most devastating news: Coco had been suffering from depression for a few years, but her condition deteriorated drastically over the last few months,” the sisters said. “Although Coco sought professional help and did her best to fight depression, sadly that demon inside of her took the better of her.”

Hong Kong singer-songwriter Coco Lee has died after trying to take her own life, according to a Facebook post by her sisters. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Hong Kong action film “The White Storm: Heaven or Hell” will have its North American premiere at the New York Asian Film Festival, where it is a late addition to the line-up. The festival runs July 14–30, 2023 at Film at Lincoln Center (FLC). Directed by Herman Yau, the film sees Louis Koo, Aaron Kwok and Sean Lau (aka Lau Ching-wan) appear together for the first time. It is set in the ‘Golden Triangle’ region famous for drugs production and trafficking. Kwok plays an undercover cop who infiltrates a drug cartel led by a notorious Thai drug lord (Lau). In classic heroic bloodshed fashion, the two develop a bond of brotherhood. The cop’s only hope of escaping the treacherous jungle region and his ambiguous morality is to somehow contact the superintendent of the Hong Kong Narcotics Bureau, who has solemnly sworn to demolish the cartel once and for all.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Asia Satellite Telecommunications (AsiaSat), a leading operator of satellites, has moved into content distribution with the acquisition of Hong Kong- and U.K.-based TV distributor Lightning International. The diversification was described by AsiaSat as “a strategic move to expand the company’s services and extend its clients’ reach to global audiences through traditional and new distribution platforms including OTT and FAST.” AsiaSat is known to be acquiring 100% of Lightning International, but other deal terms were not disclosed.

Warner Bros Discovery has announced three Thai HBO Asia Originals, including a third and final season of action fantasy Khun Pan and unscripted shows MarkKim + Chef and Deane’s Dynasty.

Stan Refreshes Lionsgate Output Deal

Aisling Bea inspired Kodaline’s Mark Prendergast to go solo in new solo outing, Man Alive.Prendergast has now shared the debut single of his new solo project, ‘Be Someone’ that you can listen to below.According to a statement, his friend, actor Aisling Bea, proved to be “a pivotal influence for him to take Man Alive to the wider world.”A statement revealed that “he played her an early version of ‘Be Someone’ when they were in Los Angeles in 2021, and her belief in the project really pushed him to make it happen.” It also noted that she encouraged him to change the first provisional name he had for his solo project, ‘Blood Type’, telling him it was “shit and doesn’t match your music.” Eventually, he went with Man Alive.Speaking about his new single, Prendergast said: “‘Be Someone’ is about a long-distance relationship falling apart, and how when you’re with somebody, they make you feel like a certain type of person, but then when you end the relationship and you’re by yourself, you always become a completely different person.”A statement added that the break-up, followed by lockdown, inspired Prendergast to write, record and produce a catalogue of songs from his home studio.You can listen to the song here:Earlier this year, Kodaline announced a tour of Asia this autumn, where they will travel to Singapore, Philippines, Taipei, Bangkok and more.They will kick off the tour September 5 in Singapore and then play shows in Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, Manila, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Seoul.

said to TheWrap at Sundance when discussing “Shortcomings, “You’ve seen Asians fight wars, you’ve seen them be crazy rich, but have you seen them at a diner eating a sandwich?” Of course, “The Modelizer” seems to offer up more crazy rich antics, but every demographic should have their wealth fantasies and Mad Libs-worthy romantic comedies too.  The film was shot in Hong Kong during the COVID-19 pandemic, with production taking place over three weeks in late 2020 and early 2021.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The International Olympic Committee said on Thursday that Swiss-based, Chinese-owned Infront Sports & Media would handle broadcast right sales in much of Asia for the next series of Summer and Winter games. The deal covers 22 territories including Afghanistan, Brunei, Cambodia, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam – but not China, Japan or South Korea, and runs 2026-2032. That means it will cover the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and the Los Angeles 2028 and Brisbane 2032 Summer games. The 2030 Winter Olympics, which have yet to be allocated a host, and all Youth Olympic Games during this period will also be covered.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Disney is to close its six remaining linear TV channels in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Korea as the conglomerate puts a greater emphasis on direct-to-consumer streaming. The channels concerned are National Geographic, National Geographic Wild, Star Chinese Movies, Star Chinese Channel, Star Movies and Star World. Linear services will end from September in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Korea, and by December in Taiwan. The group expects to retain a streamlined television portfolio with channels in Japan, China, Australia and New Zealand for the time being.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The 25th Shanghai International Film Festival, June 9 to 18, has unveiled the titles in contention for awards in its four main feature-length sections: main competition, Asian New Talent, Animation film and documentary. These are eligible for the festival’s prestigious Golden Goblet Awards, winners of which will be announced at the Shanghai Grand Theater on the evening of June 17. While SIFF remains the only mainland China festival to be accredited as a so-called A-list event by the International Federation of Film Producers (FIAPF), its selections are largely separate and distinct from those at other major international festivals.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Sundance Film Festival Asia, an offshoot of the Sundance Institute, is to set up camp in Taipei, Taiwan this summer. The three-day mini festival will run Aug. 18-20 and be put together in association with local organizer G2Go Entertainment. The event will showcase a handful of films curated by the Sundance Institute and host a short film competition that is open only to Taiwanese productions. Panel discussions will accompany the festival to foster artistic exchange, providing opportunities for the Taiwan film industry to connect with Sundance’s executive team, and elevating Taiwan’s image and presence in the global independent film industry. 

In the early ’90s, Japan’s Takeshi “Beat” Kitano was on a roll, with a superb string of nuanced crime movies that stood in stark contrast to the good-vs.-evil bullet operas that were coming out of Hong Kong at the time. Kitano’s darkly funny cynicism (who else could have made Violent Cop?) made him stand out by miles, but it soon became his weakness, as became evident in the lean period after the success of Zatoichi in 2013. The experimental, semi-autobiographical trilogy that followed — Takeshis’, Glory to the Filmmaker and Achilles and the Tortoise — seemed to offer little more than self-sabotage, the work of a frustrated artist trying to take a blowtorch to his populist image without much thought for the future.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Mainland Chinese star Wang Luodan (“The Dead End,” “Struggle,” “The Continent”) and Hong Kong-born Bosco Wong (“Lives of Omission,” “Triumph In The Skies”) head the cast of “My Dearest Stranger.” The high-end suspense drama series is a production fronted by mainland Chinese distributor-producer Hishow Entertainment, which announced the production at the Cannes Market, adjacent to the Cannes Film Festival in France. Based on the best-selling novel “Secret Love,” by Fan Shu and adapted by renowned screenwriter Cao Xueping (“Game Changer”), “My Dearest Stranger” tells a compelling story of Yu Xiao, a housewife who realizes her seemingly perfect husband may have a dark side. Yu decides to cooperate with policeman Song Cheng to find out the truth, while trying to keep her own secrets from the world.

Chinese streamer Youku is teaming with Beijing-based producer-distributor Hishow Entertainment to produce high-end drama series My Dearest Stranger, starring Wang Luodan and Bosco Wong. 

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Alibaba, China’s e-commerce and entertainment giant, announced net profits of $10.6 billion for its financial year to the end of March, a year-on-year increase of 39%. The rebound was achieved on revenues of $126 billion that were up by just 2%. Using the group’s preferred non-GAAP measure to exclude extraordinary items, net income rose by a smaller 4%, but weighed in at over $20 billion. The importance of the overall figures has been rendered moot by Alibaba’s end of March announcement that it plans to transform itself from an operating company into a holding company, by allowing each of its six divisions to go their own way.

WayV, the Chinese sub-group of K-pop boyband NCT, have announced the European leg of their Fanmeeting Tour ‘Phantom’.WayV will head to two European cities as part of their wider 2023 Fanmeeting Tour ‘Phantom’. In less than a month, the boyband will perform at London’s Eventim Apollo on June 8, followed by the La Seine Musicale in Paris on June 11.According to WayV’s official Twitter account, only five of the group’s six members will be in attendance at the fanmeeting: namely Kun, Ten, Xiaojun, Hendery and YangYang.

The reduced round-trip air tickets are part of the Hong Kong Tourism Board's "Hello Hong Kong" campaign to welcome tourists back into the country after years of self-imposed travel restrictions due to COVID-19. 

Naman Ramachandran Emerging star from Hong Kong, Isabella Wei, headlines Silent D Pictures’ comedy-drama “High Wire.” The film follows the story of Go-wing, a British-Chinese takeaway girl who discovers her inner strength and artistic bravery when a circus comes to her small English town. As Go-wing navigates the challenges of her dual cultural identity, she finds herself at a crossroads and must decide between conforming to societal expectations or forging her own path towards her dreams. The film pays homage to the first and second generations of Chinese immigrants and their journey to adapt to life in England whilst facing issues of systemic racism and discrimination.

Michelle Yeoh has made the transition from action hero to Oscar winner, thanks to her acclaimed performance in “Everything Everywhere All At Once”.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Hong Kong Disneyland theme park managed a 22% increase in visitor numbers in its most recent financial year allowing it to modestly reduce its annual losses. The park, which is jointly owned by the Hong Kong government and Walt Disney, with the government holding a narrow majority, reports a financial year to the end of September – and does so more than seven months in arrears. It has been loss-making for the past eight financial years and has made profits in only three years since its opening in 2005. The 2021-2022 financial year was again complicated by the city’s strict anti-COVID restrictions. It was fully closed for three and a half months (longer than the previous financial year) and operated under other social distancing and pandemic measures. Additionally, inbound tourism was heavily curtailed, especially from mainland China. That meant that during the reporting period, the park and hotels were largely visited by locals only.

WEi have cancelled the majority of their Latin America ‘Passion’ tour.Over the weekend, WEi and their label OUI Entertainment announced that they have cancelled all dates on their upcoming Latin America ‘Passion’ tour, with the exception of the Mexico City stop on June 4.“We requested visa issuance and other matters that had to be checked in advance to ensure smooth performance. Nevertheless, we were told to proceed with the concert without issuing a proper visa and to perform in an open-air venue,” OUI Entertainment said.“Furthermore, some of the notices were not negotiated with OUI Entertainment before uploading,” the agency added.

After three long years of being cut off from the rest of the world due to pandemic travel restrictions, China’s film industry will be out in force at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. 

Disney Parks & Experiences generated the bulk of parent profits and about a third of total revenue last quarter with a noteworthy swing in international from Hong Kong to Shanghai to Paris.

EXCLUSIVE: Signature Entertainment has snapped up rights for the UK and Ireland to Hong Kong-China action picture Sakra, directed by and starring Donnie Yen, from Well Go USA. 

Dennis Harvey Film Critic Joe Piscatella’s 2017 “Joshua: Teenager vs. Superpower” offered a fairly exhilarating view of youth activism, as it charted one Hong Kong student’s spearheading public opposition to mainland China’s increasingly heavy-handed takeover. The can-do optimism that documentary left viewers with is on life support in the director’s follow-up, which shifts nominal focus to one of Joshua Wong’s fellow protest leaders. But mostly “Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law?” observes the gradual crushing of a pro-democracy movement that not long ago had promised to engage Beijing in genuine dialogue. This equally skillful if much more downbeat sequel should follow its predecessor to wide travel on the festival circuit, then broadcast and streaming exposure. 

King Charles III’s coronation arrives tomorrow (May 6), and networks and streaming services around the world are preparing coverage for the elaborate, generational event at London’s Westminster Abbey.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The BBC has acquired Norwegian comedy drama ‘Afterglow’ for BBC Four and BBC iPlayer. The 7×45 minute series tells the story of Ester Sand, the one person you think will live forever, who finds out she has cervical cancer on her 40th birthday. But after the initial shock, it’s Ester who comforts the people in her life and she has no intention of leaving the world just yet. “ ‘Afterglow’ is a story of love and life and all of the glorious and silly things we do before we die,” the broadcaster said. “Afterglow” stars Nina Ellen Odegaard (“Possession”), Torbjorn Harr (“Vikings”), Sara Khorami (“Witch Hunt”) and Hermann Sabado (“Home for Christmas”). It was created by Kjetil Indregard and Atle Knudsen, who also acts as director.  It was produced by Monster Scripted for NRK, with rights handled by Reinvent International Sales. “Funny, sad, honest and touching, ‘Afterglow’ is that rare thing – an uplifting drama about serious illness,” said Sue Deeks, head of BBC program acquisition.

EXCLUSIVE: Vertical has acquired North American rights to Keoni Waxman’s romantic comedy The Modelizer, written by and starring Byron Mann (The Big Short), slating the film for a day-and-date release on July 14th.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Television Broadcasts, Hong Kong’s leading free-to-air broadcaster, has said that it is considering legal action against a group of shareholder activists. The shareholder group, seemingly led by Chow Ngai Keung and publishing its critiques on Facebook, has made a series of complaints about TVB. These include the allegation that TVB is operating a streaming app Maiduidui in Mainland China without the proper authorization and that TVB has misled shareholders over the official name of the company that ultimately holds executive control. The minority shareholders have also criticized TVB for investments in Mainland Chinese firm SMI and State Reserve Energy Bonds, which have cost the company HK$1 billion ($128 million) of losses, and for its 2021 acquisition of e-commerce platform Ztore.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Hong Kong Film Awards gave a huge dose of support to veteran filmmaker Mabel Cheung Yuen-ting, naming her documentary “To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self” as best film on Sunday, despite local controversy which saw it pulled from screens earlier this year. The numerical winner on the night was “Detectives Vs Sleuths,” which earned four major awards: best director, best screenplay, best actor (Sean Lau Ching-wan) and best cinematography. The hugely popular Sammi Cheng was named winner of the best actress award, her first win after six previous nominations. Michelle Yeoh was on hand to present the prize for best new performer to 10-year-old Sahal Zaman, for his role in “Sunny Side of the Street.” Yeoh, who recently won the Oscar for best actress in “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” established her career in Hong Kong and won the same award back in 1986 with “Yes, Madam.”

Mabel Cheung’s controversial documentary To My Nineteen-year-old Self scooped Best Picture at the Hong Kong Film Awards on Sunday night (April 16), where the crowds also applauded an appearance by Best Actress Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh.