HBO Asia Ramps Up Originals, Pacts with Hulu Japan

As it marks its 25th anniversary, HBO Asia has expanded its lineup of originals from the region, including its first co-production with Hulu Japan.

Miss Sherlock is a co-production between HBO Asia and HJ Holdings and marks the premium channel operator’s first original in Japan. The eight-part drama featuring Yuko Takeuchi and Shihori Kanjiya will roll out across 20 markets in April 2018, exclusively on Hulu in Japan and the HBO Asia bouquet across the region.

Jonathan Spink, CEO of HBO Asia, called the show a “new interpretation of a well-loved character set in modern-day Japan…. Following the success of our ten HBO Asia Original productions, which were based in various Asian countries, producing a series in Japan seemed like a natural progression.”

HBO Asia announced five other projects today on the sidelines of the Asia TV Forum, set to be filmed in China, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand. “HBO has always been known to produce high-quality, premium original productions,” Spink said. “By harnessing the full potential of talent and production infrastructure the region has to offer, we are well-positioned to create premium, authentic and relevant content for our audiences in the region, many of which have been recognized for various creative and performance awards. With its richness in culture and histories, Asia is a great source of stories which make for appealing content locally as well as globally. We are excited that as a start, two of our HBO Asian originals, The Teenage Psychic and both seasons of Halfworlds, will be available to audiences in the U.S. on the HBO U.S. service from next month.”

The new slate includes Folklore, a six-episode horror anthology series set in multiple Asian countries. The creator and showrunner is award-winning Singaporean filmmaker Eric Khoo. Other directors involved in Folklore include Joko Anwar from Indonesia.

Grisse is an eight-part period drama series set in the colonial times of the Dutch East Indies, following a group who led a rebellion against a brutal governor and find themselves in control of a Dutch garrison town called Grisse.

Master of the White Crane Fist: Wong Yan-Lam and Master of the Nine Dragon Fist: Wong Ching-Ho are new installments in HBO Asia’s Chinese-language martial-arts anthology.

And The Teenage Psychic is set to return for a second season.