TBS Seals South Korean Deals

With BCWW underway, Tokyo Broadcasting System Television (TBS) has clinched a deal for the scripted series Extremely Inappropriate! to be remade in South Korea and has aligned with Something Special to co-develop a new non-scripted entertainment format.

Korea’s Basestory is developing the local version of Extremely Inappropriate!, which follows a stubborn father from the 1980s who time slips into the new millennium. Kim Jung-mi, CEO of Basestory, who will exec produce, commented: “The original Extremely Inappropriate! program conveyed values of understanding and tolerance that transcend generations through a protagonist who travels from past to present. Leveraging Basestory’s planning and production capabilities, we aim to reflect both the contemporary Korean context and the original show’s warm human insights, evoking deep emotions and empathy from Korean viewers.”

Meanwhile, with Something Special, TBS is co-developing a new entertainment format, with plans to launch it at MIP LONDON in February 2025.

TBS has been steadily expanding its business in South Korea, founding Tokyo Broadcasting System Korea in Seoul earlier this year. TBS plans to invest ¥5 billion ($35 million) in co-development in Korea across drama, variety shows, films, K-pop and more.

“One of the purposes of establishing this company is to manage co-development and co-production projects with Korean creators,” said Jun Fukai, the president of TBS Korea. “We are very happy to be working with Something Special for our first non-scripted project, as they have an abundance of expertise and experience in the global market. We hope that this collaboration will result in a new entertainment format that can go global.”

Insoon Kim, executive VP and head of content at Something Special, added: “This collaboration will be partially supported by Format Lab fund which Something Special has been selected by KOCCA (Korean Creative Content Agency) for many years, and we are very thrilled to be partnered up with such a prestigious broadcaster like TBS. We are very confident that this is a great start of creating the next global hit which will be initiated by Asia.”