Nippon TV to Air Korean Remake of Mother

Nippon TV has secured the broadcast rights for the South Korean drama Mother, a remake of its own hit series, to air in Japan.

The South Korean version of Mother will air on Nittele Plus, a channel operated by Nippon TV group company CS Nippon Corporation. Nittele Plus will broadcast the original Japanese version in its entirety as well as all episodes of the South Korean remake.

The Nippon TV original drama series Mother—written by Yuji Sakamoto, directed by Nobuo Mizuta and produced by Hisashi Tsugiya—depicts modern women who, as their lives unfold, take the time to reflect on themselves to find a new way of living. After the original version finished airing in Japan, Nippon TV secured a remake deal with CJ ENM in South Korea. The remake was produced by CJ ENM subsidiary Studio Dragon and broadcast on the tvN channel in January 2018.

Tsugiya, producer in the production division at Nippon TV, said, “I was absolutely surprised when I heard that CJ ENM wanted to buy the scripted format rights to Mother immediately after it was broadcast in Japan. They went on to work meticulously on the story of the remake so when I found out that it would air in 2018, I was really excited to see how it turned out. I had the honor of attending the 1st Cannes International Series Festival (CANNESERIES 2018) where over 2,000 people attended the screening, and I saw firsthand how the viewers were captivated by the drama. I myself was quite moved. It ended with a standing ovation and the guests held nothing back when they cheered loudly for the Studio Dragon production team and the two main characters. I was clapping so hard for them too. There was a woman crying behind me and our eyes happened to meet. She said, ‘I have the same past as the lead character. I really empathize with the story. It’s great.’ I am very happy it will be shown in full in Japan and I would be honored if many people would tune in to see it.”