FlareFlow, Refinery expand vertical franchise SupermodelMe with all-male version

SupermodelMe: The Runway Kings debuts on FlareFlow in Q4

FlareFlow, the vertical microdrama streaming app owned by China’s COL Group, is extending the SupermodelMe vertical reality franchise partnership it has created with Singapore-based prodco Refinery Media with an all-male model version of the format.

SupermodelMe: The Runway Kings follows the vertical reboot of long-running modelling competition series SupermodelMe: Make It or Break It. It marks the first ever all-male competition in the 17-year-old franchise.

SupermodelMe: The Runway Kings is scheduled to premiere on FlareFlow in the fourth quarter of 2026 and has been greenlit ahead of the launch of SupermodelMe: Make It or Break It in July.

The original SupermodelMe series launched in Asia in 2009 and ran for six seasons on platforms including AXN Asia, KIX and Diva Universal and was also acquired by Netflix. The IP is owned by Refinery Media and the original series was created by its founder, Karen Seah.

Both vertical adaptations are being hosted by Cindy Bishop, the Thai American television personality who hosted previous seasons of SupermodelMe. In SupermodelMe: The Runway Kings, Bishop will be joined by Asia’s Next Top Model star Minh Tú Nguyễn and model and influencer Brandon Espiritu.

The partners have described the first vertical adaptation of the SupermodelMe franchise as the first time an established reality IP had been fully “re-engineered” for mobile-first episodic storytelling on a large scale.

Today’s announcement was made at the Asia Pacific Video Advancement Leaders (APOS) summit in Bali. It follows this week’s news that Brazilian footballer Neymar Jr has signed a 16-title AI-powered live-action microdrama deal with FlareFlow, with the first six shows in the franchise set to debut globally from June 19 to coincide with the Fifa World Cup.

FlareFlow has released about 5,200 series to date and claims 33 million registered users in more than 200 countries and regions while supporting 14 languages.

Refinery Media’s other credits include Asia’s Next Top Model, The Apprentice: One Championship Edition, Man of the Hour and its first coproduced feature film, Mothernet, available on Netflix.