Take One Studio, 'Whale Star' to 'King of Hawaii'.. Full-scale IP Expansion Begins

*This content was translated by AI.

Content studio Take One Studio has unveiled its upcoming projects.

Take One Studio highlights its strength in combining a multi-format strategy with a proven production team. The studio designs its projects from the planning stage to expand a single IP into short-form, mid-form, and films, while production teams with proven track records in film and drama production enhance the quality. This lineup includes various content aimed at nurturing next-generation super IPs, such as dramas based on popular webtoons and high-quality short-form dramas.

First, drama projects including the Naver Webtoon original 'Whale Star' and 'Summer Girl Havana', as well as the Daum Webtoon original 'CELL', are progressing smoothly. 'Whale Star', which won the 2021 Korea Content Awards President's Award, is being co-produced with Studio Dragon and has confirmed scheduling on tvN in 2027. Moon Ga-young, Choi Woo-sik, and Heo Nam-jun will lead the cast, while director Heo Jin-ho, known for films 'Christmas in August', 'Spring Day', and 'Princess Deokhye', and director Yoo Bum-sang, known for dramas 'The Guardian', 'Sparkling Watermelon', and 'Study Group', will co-direct.

Comic fantasy romance 'Summer Girl Havana' is set to finalize casting in the second half of 2026 and begin production, while Kang Hyung-gyu's superpower action 'CELL' is also preparing production in the casting stage with Betty & Creator.

Seasonal large-scale drama 'King of Hawaii' is being developed with director Lee Won-seok, known for films 'Killing Romance' and 'How to Use Men', and writer Kim Bo-tong, known for dramas 'D.P.' and 'Lawyer No Mu-jin'. Set in Hawaii in the late 1980s, the story follows a second-generation Korean immigrant youth who rises to become the new king of the criminal world amidst conflicts among various factions. Additionally, BBC original genre work 'Unforgotten', directed by Kim Tae-gyun, known for films 'Murder' and 'The Witch', and romantic comedy drama 'Nobi Seonho-sasang', which features a reversal of power dynamics, are also in production.

Short-form dramas are gaining attention for bringing together K-POP artists and veteran production teams. Take One Studio, through its parent company Take One Company's global K-POP short-form platform 'KITZ', launched in January, has already presented five works, from 'Wind Up' starring NCT's Jeno and Jaemin to 'After School Exorcism Club' starring 5PM.

'Wind Up', directed by Kim Sung-ho, known for dramas 'Move to Heaven: I Am You' and 'Real Fight', received critical acclaim. 'Jump Boy LIVE', starring Berry Good's Kang Min, is directed by Lee Jung-hoon, known for the drama 'Hunter with a Scalpel'. 'Love WiFi-Gung', starring Young-hoon, Lee Ru-da, and Kim Dong-jun, is set to be released soon, with director Jang Tae-yu, known for 'The Tyrant's Chef', participating as the project creator. 'Death Note: Life Extension Project', starring Lee Min-ki and Montex's Hyungwon, is directed by Lee Gye-byeok, known for films 'Lucky' and 'Sour and Sweet'. Based on this lineup, Take One Studio is currently planning and developing over 40 short-form dramas and plans to expand production to 20 titles by the end of the year.

The potential for IP expansion is also noteworthy. 'After School Exorcism Club', first presented as a short-form drama on Kitz, is scheduled to be released as a film and animation, while 'Love WiFi-Gung' and 'Death Note: Life Extension Project' will also be available as films and mid-form series. 'Whale Star' is also preparing for a musical production following its drama release.

Take One Studio is also expanding its presence in the webtoon business. Naver Webtoon is serializing 'Secret Garden', 'Midout', and 'To the Returning Summer', and new webtoons including 'Boundary Classroom', a shamanic action fantasy, which is part of the Seoul Economic Development Agency (SBA) Seoul Theme Production Support Project, are scheduled for sequential release this year. Alongside this, multiple film projects, including the horror film 'Millye', directed by Yang Hyun-ah, which has entered casting, are underway. Take One Studio is being recognized as a comprehensive content studio strengthening its position by covering dramas, short-form, webtoons, and films.

Take One Studio Lee Sang-yun (CEO) stated, "Take One Studio is continuously discovering original IPs that transcend boundaries of genre and format," and added, "We will continue to develop 'super IPs' that resonate in the global market."

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*This content was translated by AI.