Chinese remake of 'Mad About You' in the works

BEIJING, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Shanghai Media Group has acquired the exclusive, first-run satellite television rights to the new comedy Xin Hun Gong Yu, which is a Chinese adaptation of the U.S. sitcom Mad About You.

The series -- which like its source material is about a city-dwelling, newlywed couple looking to sustain their marital bliss despite hurdles related to their careers, families and friends -- will debut in early January on Dragon TV.

Youku Tudou has secured the online video rights to the series, with episodes available on the streaming platform shortly after the satellite TV premiere.

The Asian incarnation of the comedy was penned by veteran Chinese screenwriter Shu Huan and stars real-life husband and wife Li Jiahang and Li Sheng. The project is from Huaso Film/TV Digital Production, the joint-venture production company of Sony Pictures Television and CCTV6's HuaCheng Pictures, and Croton Media.

"With Xin Hun Gong Yu, we have combined SPT's expertise in Hollywood storytelling with strong local writing talent to create a comedy that captures the spirit of the original series in a way that is authentically Chinese," Andrea Wong, president of international production for Sony Pictures Television and president of international for Sony Pictures Entertainment, said in a statement Wednesday. "We are pleased to be working with both Dragon TV and Youku Tudou to bring this series to a broad Chinese audience."

The original series was set in New York and starred Helen Hunt and Paul Reiser. It was created by Reiser and Danny Jacobson, and ran for seven seasons on NBC 1992-99.

Mad About You is the latest comedy to be adapted in Asia by SPT, following Indian versions of Everybody Loves Raymond for Star Plus and I Dream of Jeannie for SAB. The process of selling Everybody Loves Raymond internationally was chronicled in the 2010 documentary Exporting Raymond.