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New Delhi: American streaming service Netflix said the massive success of its Korean shows and films could lead to remakes in India, where local nuances are crucial to programming. Overall, the Reed Hastings-owned platform said global viewing hours of its Korean shows grew six-fold in 2021 compared to 2019.
Thriller Squid Game has emerged as the biggest show the platform has launched, reigning as the most-viewed Netflix show in 94 countries at its peak with 95% of its viewership coming from outside Korea.
“The local film and broadcasting industries are so strong in India that it’s wise to remake Korean shows in a way that is relevant for audiences here. There are a few projects that we are in active discussions for, with our India team," said Don Kang, Netflix vice-president, content (Korea) during a media roundtable on Wednesday.
He said the challenge would be to plan these shows really well, which could be either direct remakes or spin-offs. Other than India, Netflix is also looking at remaking Korean shows for the US and some other international markets.
“There has always been some level of demand for Korean content to be shown in neighbouring countries but it was difficult to bring it to India which has a robust film and television industry itself," said Kong.
He said the service doesn’t believe in tailoring content to suit a particular market but a great story that works for local--in this case, Korean audiences, will make it big everywhere. The ambition is for an Indian original to, someday, see the kind of traction in south Korea that Squid Game did here, Kong said.
In 2021, the premiere of Netflix’s dark fantasy streaming series Hellbound clocked 43.48 million viewing hours. The show was among the Top 10 Netflix shows in 93 countries, and ranked number one in 34 countries. Science fiction mystery The Silent Sea also made it to the number one spot on the weekly non-English Top 10 lists for its premiere.
On Wednesday, the platform announced 25 new originals for 2022. Starting with All of Us Are Dead on 28 January, the upcoming slate includes titles like Love and Leashes, Forecasting Love and Weather, Thirty-Nine, Juvenile Justice, Tomorrow, Remarriage and Desires, Love to Hate You and Somebody.
“Subtitling and dubbing have enabled our shows to travel," said Kang who added that the service is trying to build on genres like dark thrillers, romantic comedies and unscripted shows alike. While 95% of audiences for Squid Game came from outside Korea, 97% of those watched the show with either subs or dubs.
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