Both will serve as executive producers for Japanese manga series
Quibi has partnered with Sony Pictures Television and Universal Content Productions to develop a live-action adaptation of the popular Japanese manga series “Tomie,” the streaming service announced on Wednesday.
Created by Junji Ito, who specializes in horror, the original series follows a young beautiful girl who acts like a succubus, possessing a supernatural power to make any man fall in love with her. Through her presence and emotional manipulation, she drives these men into jealous rages that lead to brutal acts of violence. While Tomie is inevitably killed time and time again, she is able to regenerate and spread her curse to other victims.
Quibi describes its adaptation as “the story of what happens when a beautiful high school girl goes missing and pieces of her body are discovered scattered across a small town. But what starts out as a murder mystery turns into something even more horrific.”
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Alexandre Aja, known for directing Wes Craven’s “The Hills Have Eyes” in 2006, will direct the series. Aja will also serve as executive producer along with David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (“The Conjuring,” “Aquaman”), who will write the series. Hiroki Shirota will serve as a co-producer.
“Tomie,” which first hit the manga market in 1987, has been adapted into a series of Japanese horror films released between 1999 and 2011. There are eight films in the series, however, this will be the first attempt at creating a short-form version of the series, with each episode going no longer than 10 minutes.
With $1 billion in funding already from big-name investors like Disney and Viacom, Quibi has spent much of the last month adding new series to its fold. The streamer recently added sci-fi drama “Don’t Look Deeper” starring Don Cheadle, a stunt driving show from Idris Elba (“Elba vs. Block”), and a new beauty series produced by and starring Tyra Banks, aptly called “Beauty.” “Mapleworth Murders,” a Lorne Michaels and Seth Meyers-produced comedic murder mystery is also on its way, along with an action show starring Liam Hemsworth.
Matt Lopez