Hit 2014 Korean comedy Miss Granny has already been remade for China and several other countries, and is now getting the transfer treatment in English and Spanish. Korea powerhouse CJ E&M has unveiled a plan to jointly produce the English-language re-do with Tyler Perry’s 34th Street Films and the Spanish take with Eugenio Derbez’s 3pas Studios, according to local reports. The original Korean film, directed by Dong-hyuk Hwang, was the No. 5 title of 2014 with about $55M in box office. The Chinese remake, helmed by Leste Chen, went by the English-language title 20, Once Again! and set a record for a Korea/China co-production last year, grossing $59M in the Middle Kingdom. Lu Han, of Star Wars: The Force Awakens ambassadorship fame, starred. The story centers on a 70-year-old widow who is accidentally transformed into her 20-year-old self. According to local reports, the aim is to have the film in U.S. theaters by 2018. This follows word that 2011 Korean film Sunny will be remade by CJ and Brett Ratner’s RatPac. Sunny star Shim Eun-kyoung also starred in the original Miss Granny and is in this year’s smash Train To Busan.
ITV Studios
BAFTA Scotland held its film, TV and games awards in Glasgow on Sunday night with BBC One/ITV Studios crime series Shetland scoring four wins including Best Television Drama and Best Actor for Douglas Henshall. In other major prizes, Outlander’s Caitriona Balfe was named Best Actress, Television. In film, Peter Mullan won Best Actor for Hector, and Kate Dickie won the comparable Actress prize for Couple In A Hole. The Feature Film nod went to Tommy’s Honour, directed by Jason Connery. The top Game honor was awarded to Space Budgie’s Glitchspace. In a special nod, Ken Loach’s Sixteen Films was honored for its Outstanding Contribution to Film. Sixteen made Loach’s I, Daniel Blake which won the Palme d’Or in Cannes this year.
Courtesy of Showtime
With the 5th and final season of Showtime comedy Episodes due to premiere next year, Hat Trick International says it has pre-sold the last run around the world. The Matt LeBlanc-starrer is produced by Hat Trick/Crane Klarik Productions and is currently in production for delivery in December. In the U.S. it airs on Showtime and in the UK on BBC Two. Tamsin Greig and Stephen Mangan also star in the biting Emmy-nominated and Golden Globe-winning series about a successful British husband and wife comedy team lured to Hollywood to produce a new version of their hit TV series for a U.S. network. The seven-episode 5th season has closed deals that include Africa (BBC Worldwide), Asia (Fox), Australia (ABC and Stan), CEE (HBO), Israel (Yes DBS), New Zealand (Sky), Norway (SBS Discovery), Portugal (Fox) and Spain (Canal+). LeBlanc’s new CBS comedy, Man With A Plan, debuted in late October.
