A Still from ‘King of Comedy’ (1999)
Stephen Chow’s Hit Movies to be Adapted into Big-budget Online Drama Series
New Culture Media （新文化）’s PDAL will form a joint venture with Chinese production company Linghe Culture Media (灵河文化） to produce over ten online drama series based on Stephen Chow‘s hit movies, such as ‘The God of Cookery’ and ‘King of Comedy,’ according to an official statement from New Culture Media. Linghe Culture Media will pay approximately 168 million yuan ($25.4 million) to acquire the rights to Stephen Chow’s movie IPs. Once the two parties have entered the joint venture, PDAL will own 75% of the joint venture and Linghe Culture Media will own 25%. Linghe Culture Media is led by acclaimed Chinese screenwriter Bai Yicong who once participated in the productions of hit Chinese online drama series, including ‘Candle in the Tomb,’ ‘Darker 2,’ and ‘Young Sherlock.’ Read more on JRJ.com
‘Wolf Warrior 2’ Set for Wide Release in Japan
China’s box office smash hit ‘Wolf Warrior 2‘ has been scheduled for wide release on January 12, 2018 in several commercial Japanese theaters, including Toho Cinema. Previously, the film has played in select Japanese theaters as a part of a film series organized by arthouse cinema chain ‘Cinemart.’ The upcoming wide release indicates that the previous limited release was a success. According to Box Office Mojo, ‘Wolf Warrior 2’ has raked in over $870 million worldwide, becoming the only non-English film on the list of 100 all-time highest grossing films. Read more on Mtime
Previously Postponed ‘Youth’ Finally Met the Chinese Audience
The China premiere of Feng Xiaogang’s latest drama film ‘Youth,’ which tells the coming-of-age story of members of a so-called military cultural troupe, took place in Beijing on December 6. Director Feng Xiaogang, the full cast, and several Chinese A-listers, such as Fan Bingbing, Ge You, and Bai Baihe, attended the premiere event. Many audiences, including Fang Bingbing, were moved to tears after watching the film. The original release date of the film was Sept. 29, right ahead of China’s weeklong National Day holiday. However, it was announced on Sept. 24 that the release would be postponed following talks with China’s national movie bureau and “relevant parties.” Read more on Mtime
Some Films Have Been Made, but Never Met the Audience
After being made five years ago, ‘Forever Young,’ a Chinese drama film starring Zhang Ziyi, will finally meet the Chinese audience in theater in early 2018. However, there are some other films that have been announced or even made long time ago, but haven’t had the luck to be released. Here is a list of Chinese films that have been announced or made over the past a few years, but then mysteriously disappeared in front of the public eye. Some listed films are: The Three-Body Problem: I,’ ‘ ‘Into the Rainbow,’ ‘Tai Chi 3’ and ‘Journey to the West.‘ Read more on Sina
