Disney+ Coming To South Korea, Hong Kong And Taiwan, With Japan Expanding Its Content

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefTwo films each from India, Iran and South Korea feature in the eleven-title New Currents competition that is at the heart of the Busan International Film Festival.The festival this year will be operated as an in-person event Oct 6-15, 2021.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief“Hostage: Missing Celebrity” held on to top spot at the South Korean box office as new release “Guimoon: The Lightless Door” gave local films the top four chart places over the weekend.

Minecraft being given an R-rating due to its online multiplayer capability.

Rebecca Souw Global streaming giant Netflix has teamed with South Korea’s largest cinema chain CJ CGV to give theatrical releases to seven Netflix Original movies. The Korean-language titles will be given a limited 13-day run (Sept.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefWarnerMedia is set to premiere Taiwanese drama series “Who’s By Your Side” later this year. It will be presented as an HBO Asia original and play on HBO and the streaming service HBO Go in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.Directed by Peter Ho, the ten-part show with 60-minute episodes, explores relationship issues and marital challenges, and depicts painful dilemmas for the characters through a unique lens on their daily lives.

Nicole Kidman to enter the region without adhering to quarantine rules.Kidman has faced criticism from Hong Kong citizens and local media for skipping COVID-19 quarantine measures after flying in via private jet from Sydney, Australia on August 12.Last week, anyone flying into Hong Kong from Australia would have been subject to seven-days quarantine in a government-approved hotel.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefDisney’s Asia-Pacific president Luke Kang and Greg Silverman, CEO & founder of Stampede Ventures are among the top executives who are confirmed as speakers at the September edition of APOS.

Hong Kong’s Commerce and Economic Development Bureau has been facing pressure to answer why Nicole Kidman was exempt from city’s seven-day hotel quarantine for vaccinated people arriving from Australia. They have now released a statement on why she was given an exemption.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefAmerican cartoon giant DC Comics and South Korean talent agency HYBE have agreed to work with online animation firm Webtoon on content creation.Korea-based Webtoon is part of Asian internet giant Naver, best known for its Naver search engine functions and for the Line messaging app.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorDC Universe superheroes will be featured in several upcoming webcomics series, through a new deal between WarnerMedia’s DC Entertainment and Webtoon.Under the agreement, DC and Webtoon, owned by South Korean internet company Naver, will collaborate on standalone webcomics that “will appeal to all fans, without the need to know or read any previous stories,” according to the companies.For now, however, DC and Webtoon aren’t divulging any details about the projects

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefComedy -action movie “Sinkhole” lifted the South Korea box office over the weekend with a $5.58 million start in theaters.The debut was the highest weekend score this year by a local Korean movie and trailed only “Black Widow” and “F9.” It was achieved from a launch on 1,604 screens according to data from the Korean Film Council’s Kobis tracking service.The disaster film was the second directed by Kim Ji-hoon, who previously made another in a similar vein “The

Legendary has closed a deal with renowned Japanese filmmaker Shinsuke Sato to direct the live-action adaptation of “My Hero Academia (MHA),” the globally acclaimed manga property, Legendary announced on Friday.Sato is one of the most prolific filmmakers in Japan, having most recently directed the critically acclaimed Japanese hit feature film “Kingdom” in 2019 and Netflix’s “Alice in Borderland” series in 2020.

Angelique Jackson Renowned Japanese filmmaker Shinsuke Sato (“I Am a Hero,” “Kingdom” and “Alice in Borderland”) has signed on to direct a live-action adaptation of “My Hero Academia” for Legendary.The prolific filmmaker will make his English-language debut with the movie, which is based on the globally acclaimed manga property.

Shinsuke Sato, the director behind the Japanese hit movie Kingdom and it upcoming sequel, is set to make his English-language film debut with My Hero Academia, Legendary’s live-action adaptation of the popular Japanese manga franchise created by Kohei Horikoshi.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefStreaming platform Disney Plus will be expanded to begin operations in South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan in November this year.The announcement was made on the sidelines of Thursday’s Walt Disney Co. third quarter earnings filings.The current Disney Plus service in Japan will be expanded to feature additional general entertainment content in October 2021.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief“Escape From Mogadishu” held on to its place at the top of the South Korean box office for the second weekend. It comfortably overcame the challenge from newly released “The Suicide Squad.”“Mogadishu” earned $4.26 million in its second weekend of release, down only 14% compared with its first session, in which it took $4.96 million.

As the Tokyo Olympics draw to a close, the gay sporting world will be keeping its eyes firmly on East Asia when the Gay Games 2022 head to Hong Kong next year.As sports fans from across the globe tune into the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, the organisers of the 11th Gay Games, scheduled to open in November 2022 in Hong Kong, are hustling to ensure the event runs without a hitch.