Ugly Betty arrives in China

MIP NEWS: Production has begun on the Televisa-produced Chinese adaptation of La Fea Mas Bella (aka The Prettiest Ugly Girl, Ugly Betty), a format owned by Colombia’s RCN Television.

The production is being made in collaboration with Hunan Satellite Television Company of China, independent production company Nesound and RCN Television. The show’s title in Mandarin will be Chou Nu Wu Di (The Ugly Girl With No Rival).

Jose Baston, corporate VP of television for Televisa Group, said the project “marks the beginning of a new age for Televisa and its presence in the Asian market, as well as an historic step for the relationship and cultural exchange between the two countries.”

He added: “Although the soap operas in China usually last between 30 and 60 episodes, the intention of Televisa and its partners, Hunan, Nesound and RCN Television, is to produce the 400 episodes that were made in Mexico but adapted to China’s social reality and local taste.”

The Chinese version of La Fea Mas Bella will be broadcast in September, divided into five seasons, each 80×30′, with an investment of more than US$20m.

Hunan Satellite Television Company, whose channels reach a total audience close to 900 million viewers, said it aims to make Chou Nu Wu Di the most important Chinese production of the year.