Movie viewership amongst Netflix‘s APAC subscribers grew by almost 20% in 2024, mentioned Minyoung Kim, Netflix’s head for APAC content material (excluding Korea).
Talking on the streamer’s APAC showcase in Tokyo, Kim added that greater than 100 APAC movies peaked in Netflix’s international prime 10 listing for non-English movies all through 2024. These have included titles like Korea’s Rebellion, Indonesia’s The Shadow Strays and Japan’s Metropolis Hunter.
Total, Netflix members globally watch a median of seven movies a month.
Kim additionally highlighted the expansive cultural impression that the streamer’s movie slate has produced throughout Asia. For instance, when Netflix’s live-action adaptation of the favored “Metropolis Hunter” manga collection premiered in April final 12 months, gross sales of the unique manga, together with each digital and laborious copies, went up by 900%.
Wanting forward, the streamer is about to broaden its choices throughout Asia this 12 months, which incorporates two unique zombie movies from Southeast Asia and Netflix Korea’s first-ever animated movie.
Whereas the zombie style has lengthy been dominated by English-language titles — and in recent times, by Korean initiatives like Practice to Busan, All of Us Are Lifeless and Kingdom — Netflix mentioned that it’s hoping so as to add Southeast Asia’s choices to the worldwide combine. With a monitor document of success in Indonesia and Thailand already with the streamer’s horror titles, Netflix can be set to launch two unique zombie movies from these nations, titled Elixir and Ziam.
Malobika Banerji, the Netflix’s senior director for Southeast Asian content material, mentioned that the Indonesian and Thai groups engaged on Elixir and Ziam consulted with among the staff members who labored on Korean zombie collection Kingdom, with the Korean staff providing recommendation in areas like make-up and results.
Over in Japan, the streamer is launching its tentpole movie Bullet Practice Explosion on April 23. The movie is a reboot of the unique 1975 film The Bullet Practice, which impressed the Hollywood blockbuster Velocity.
Shin Takahashi, Netflix’s head of Japanese live-action movies and collection, mentioned that this movie marked an unprecedented scale of collaboration with Japanese railway firm JR East. The manufacturing managed to safe entry to movie one of many firm’s real-life bullet trains on a number of journeys.
“We have been in a position to hire a whole bullet prepare and movie it in movement seven occasions, travelling forwards and backwards from Tokyo to Aomori,” mentioned Takahashi. “This was not doable within the unique The Bullet Practice and stays unparalleled in Japanese movie manufacturing to this present day. Sometimes, even when a prepare might be borrowed, filming can be restricted to at least one or two occasions, making this a rare degree of cooperation in Japan.”
“The massive distinction this time is the time we took to convey the story, inventive imaginative and prescient and intent to JR East. We have been in a position to work with them via repeated discussions and time we spent with them throughout pre-production,” added Takahashi.
Netflix Japan will mark its 10-year anniversary this 12 months. Different titles on the streamer’s Japanese slate embody the recently-premiered Demon Metropolis, in addition to 10Dance, a movie concerning the aggressive dance world, set to launch later this 12 months.
Ruchikaa Kapoor Sheikh, who leads movies for Netflix India, shared that just about half of the nation’s Netflix viewership comes from movie, which is likely one of the highest globally. Up to now 12 months, not less than one Indian movie featured in Netflix’s international Prime 10 non-English listing each week.
One of many streamer’s Indian titles this 12 months is Toaster, which stars Rajkummar Rao, who additionally serves as producer alongside his spouse, Patralekhaa. That is the primary title from Kampa Movies, a manufacturing firm run by Rao and Patralekhaa.
“After we learn a one-pager of Toaster, I believed that this story was very distinctive, so we developed it right into a script,” mentioned Rao. “The writing must be superb for comedy-genre movies. The scenario must be humorous, so you may simply be genuine and react to the scenario.”
Rao mentioned that he solely realized that he was good at comedy in 2017 when he starred in Newton, which later received Finest Characteristic Movie at India’s Nationwide Movie Awards. “For those who at all times simply react to a selected scenario, it is going to come throughout humorous. That’s what I attempt to do. I strive to not be humorous whereas doing comedy, which is a really tough activity, as a result of typically you get grasping, pondering that you are able to do extra, which might spoil the scene. You truly need to be very managed if you do comedy,” added Rao.
In Korea, the place the streamer has seen record-breaking success over the previous couple of years, the main target for this 12 months is to diversify its choices, mentioned Vincent Taewon Kim, Netflix’s director for Korean content material. This 12 months’s slate contains its first-ever animated movie, Misplaced in Starlight. Q3 will see the discharge of Wall to Wall, whereas Good Information, The Nice Flood and Kill Boksoon spinoff Mantis are set to premiere in This autumn.
