In an announcement first shared with CNN Business, the entertainment giant said Monday it will add new original shows featuring members of the South Korean pop group to Disney+.
This will bring five new titles with HYBE, BTS’s management company. The company was previously known as Big Hit Entertainment.
At least two of the new titles will be filmed with the entire band, including a special concert in Los Angeles and a behind-the-scenes documentary series. Disney expects the latter to debut next year.
In a recorded video message shared with CNN Business, the band said they are looking forward to showing fans “an up close and personal side of us.”
BTS has enjoyed meteoric success in recent years, attracting legions of fans around the world known as “The Army”. However, the seven-piece band recently announced that they will be taking a break to explore various projects, including some on a solo basis.
The new tie-up with Disney reflects that. One upcoming title is a reality show that will see V, a BTS star, go on vacation with other Korean celebrities, the company said.
The documentary will also look into the group’s daily lives “as they prepare for their second chapter,” Disney and HYBE said in a joint statement.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The move shows how Disney ( DIS ) is focusing on top-tier talent as it continues to pursue Netflix ( NFLX ) and cash in on the recent wave of popularity surrounding Korean content and culture. Last year, for example, fans around the world raved about “Squid Game,” the South Korean Netflix hit that became the company’s most popular show globally. Disney said it has also found success with titles such as “Snow White,” a Korean series that has recently become one of the most-watched titles across Asia.
“This collaboration represents our creative ambition to work with iconic content creators and top stars in the Asia-Pacific region so that their talent can be enjoyed by mainstream audiences in multiple ways,” said Jessica Cam-Engle, Head of Content of Disney for Asia Pacific, in a statement. “We believe these new titles will captivate users around the world, and we look forward to introducing more music content to our service.”
The move is part of a major expansion of Asian content announced by the company last October. It plans to greenlight more than 50 original titles from the region by 2023.
At the time, the Hollywood giant said it was ordering new shows from South Korea, Japan, Australia, Taiwan and Indonesia. Many of the programs will be presented in local languages, from Bahasa Indonesia to Mandarin.
Netflix is also pouring money into original Asian-language content, and in particular is touting the global success of its Korean and Japanese programming. But the company’s shares have come under pressure in recent months after it revealed in April that it had lost subscribers for the first time in a decade. The news has renewed debate about the long-term outlook for the streaming industry. Investors, however, seem more relaxed about Disney. The company said in its most recent earnings call in May that it added more Disney+ subscribers than expected last quarter, bringing the total to 137.7 million.
Add Comment