Filmart: Singapore’s mm2, Taiwan’s Man Man Er Team on TV Series Adaptation of Bestselling Book ‘Tales of Mystery’

Singapore-based entertainment company mm2 and Taiwan’s Man Man Er revealed Tuesday at Hong Kong’s Filmart that they are teaming up to develop a high-end series adaptation of the bestselling Taiwanese book Tales of Mystery. The project is the first title to emerge from a new development deal the two partners have signed with Taiwanese IP company Million Star Entertainment.

Tales of Mystery tells the tales of a mysterious old woman who grants wishes through the use of talismans she writes out in long slips of yellow paper. Each wish will be granted, as long as the wisher agrees to her price — and accepts the consequences of their desires.

The series is adapted from the best-selling supernatural book series of the same name by the popular Taiwanese writer who goes by the pen name Teensy. Teensy is also the author of Agent From Above, a title that was adapted by Netflix as part of its recent Chinese-language content slate. There are currently seven books in the Tales of Mystery series, giving mm2 and Man Man Er plenty of room to run with the project if it proves successful. Screenwriter Chen Wen Tzu (V-Focus) is adapting the books for the screen.

“This is the second project from author Teensy that we are developing into a series, targeting an international market,” says Ng Say Yong, managing director of mm2 Entertainment. Teensy is a powerful storyteller in the fantasy genre, well-known for integrating nativist mythology and occult legend into stories of the modern, urban world. Tales of the supernatural are always a fun escape from reality.”

Added Chen Chi Yuan, general manager at Man Man Er: “The lead character of Fu Zhi Po Po is a highly empathic character, with a quiet strength and an air of mystery, who has to navigate the expressed and unexpressed desires of her clients. She is also a shapeshifter who appears ageless to those who meet her. This will be an exciting role and we are on the lookout for the perfect actor to be cast as the female lead.”