Legendary Entertainment to develop Tencent Comics’ popular webcomic I’m a Killer Maid into a TV series, a rare example of Chinese IP being developed for an international audience.
According to Variety, the series will be produced by Tencent Pictures, with CEO and Tencent Group vice president Edward Cheng Wu on board as executive producer. Wenxin She will oversee and produce the project for Tencent Pictures, while former Legendary creative executive Vasco Xu will serve as an independent producer.
Known as “‘Mary Poppins’ turned ‘John Wick’” adventure with shades of Freaky Friday and Killing Eve, I’m a Killer Maid follows the story of a retired assassin group female, Bacai, who tries to live a normal life as a housemaid for a shy, nerdy comic book writer who rarely leaves his house. Things take a new turn when she accidentally swaps bodies with her boss.
The comic is one of the Chinese platform’s more popular titles, with a total of 1.66 billion views worldwide so far.
Legendary says the show will explore ideas of “gender identity and expression, male/female dynamics and genre deconstruction.” Unlike the 64-minute, straight-to-streaming 2017 adaptation from Tencent and iQiyi, Legendary plans to treat the LGBTQ theme more seriously.
A cast led by a strong Asian female lead with other diverse supporting characters is on the cards.
