Wentworth Miller, better known as Michael Schofield on the hugely popular TV series Prison Break, has been invited to China, and is expected to be here in June:

The Shanghai-based News Times reported Wentworth Miller as having been invited by Zhongbo Media Group, who have bought the rights from Fox to shoot an online video adaptation of the American hit TV drama.

In an interview with the paper, an official of Zhongbo said that Miller is coming to promote the Chinese version of Prison Break, and will take part in some commercial activities. Miller is also invited to act as a final judge to select actors for the Chinese Prison Break. Source: Xinhua

Prison Break has gained an enormous following here in China. What Xinhua neglected to mention is that Prison Break’s amazing popularity has spread almost exclusively through piracy. Fake DVDs and VCDs of Prison Break widely available, and even after the recent so-called DVD crackdown.

But nevermind the DVDs, Prison Break’s main means of escaping copyright into the Middle Kingdom is the Chinese internet:

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And that’s just for starters… There are tons of other video sites out there also hosting Prison Break full seasons. Not lousy 2 minute youtube clips. Full seasons.

I wonder what Fox Broadcasting has to say about that? Would they take a similar posture as they have with youtube and other American (so-called) copyright outlaws?

In any case, they seem to be willing to overlook it long enough to bring star Wentworth Miller into China, to help promote a 200 minute online Chinese adaptation of Prison Break, which Zhongbo Media licensed from Fox for $1.2 Million US.

You mean, the Government is behind all this?

Another interesting question is raised by all this hoopla. Prison Break’s plot is focused around conspiracies and corrupt/evil government officials. Could a Chinese version possibly be bold enough to include such a plotline?

Apparently no such luck:

Zhongbo Media Chief Chen Weiming says the Chinese language remake will have more plotlines on top of the original storyline and characters. The movie will encompass a well-known computer virus case from last year. A large IT company will be one of the bad guys in the adaptation, instead of the Vice President and the FBI in the American version.

Maybe they wanted to be original…

As for me, I’m mostly just curious as to how they translate T-Bag into Chinese!

Read more about Prison Break:
Watching Prison Break
Prison Break Blog (Spanish)
Prison Break News
Prison Break Blog: BTW

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