Squid Game is too dark for a Chinese adaptation, says executive of iQiyi, Baidu’s streaming video platform
- iQiyi chief content officer Wang Xiaohui says Squid Game will not get a Chinese adaptation because the country wants to promote ‘truth, goodness, and beauty’
- The South Korean drama has become a popular topic in China, where many people have already watched the show from pirated sources
“At this stage, this type of relatively dark subject matter that reflects the particularly dark side of human nature definitely won’t be produced in China,” Wang Xiaohui, chief content officer at iQiyi, told local media TMTPost in a recent interview. “Regarding content production, we must follow ideology and social trends, including the enthusiasm and unity of the Chinese people.”
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“We have our own mainstream values, which are still very different from Western countries,” Wang said. “Especially at this stage, we must pay attention to some of the worries and anxieties we face in society.”
iQiyi did not respond to a request for comment.
The Chinese streaming video platform once had a deal with Netflix to distribute its original shows in China, but the company’s CEO Gong Yu said in 2019 that the partnership had ended.
The US-based tech giant is not able to offer its service directly to Chinese consumers under the country’s strict content regulations, meaning the rights to Netflix originals must be acquired by a local distributor to get an official release.