Agent from Above

Agent from Above
Also known as	Agent from Above
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	乩身
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin jī shēn
Genre	Fantasy
Based on	"Ji Shen" by Xing Zi
Written by	Emma Chen
Directed by	Donnie Lai
Starring	Kai Ko Wang Po-chieh Hsueh Shih-ling Buffy Chen Johnny Yang Kuo Tzu-chien Sonia Sui
Country of origin	Taiwan
Original language	Mandarin
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	6
Production
Producer	Rita Chuang
Production companies	mm2 Entertainment CaiChang International Good Films Workshop
Budget	NT$180,000,000
Original release
Network	Netflix

Agent from Above (Chinese: 乩身), is an upcoming Taiwanese fantasy television series on Netflix based on the novel of the same name. The series is directed by Donnie Lai and stars Kai Ko, Wang Po-chieh, Hsueh Shih-ling, Buffy Chen, Johnny Yang, Kuo Tzu-chien, and Sonia Sui in lead roles.

Agent from Above is scheduled to premiere on Netflix, and will consist of six episodes.

Cast

Main

• Kai Ko as Han Jie (韓杰), a criminal-turned-vessel of San Tai Zi.^[1]
• Wang Po-chieh as San Tai Zi (三太子), a god who dwells in the modern world.^[1]
• Hsueh Shih-ling as Wu Tian Ji (吳天機), an heir to fortune who attempts to overthrow the mortal realm.^[1]
• Buffy Chen as Ye Zhi Ling (葉芝苓), a university student suffering from blood cancer.^[1]
• Johnny Yang as Zhang Min (張泯), a police officer who has an ability to see ghosts.^[1]
• Kuo Tzu-chien as Dragon Prince (神龍太子), a con man posing as a daoshi.^[2]
• Sonia Sui^[2]

Recurring

• Chris Pan^[3]
• Phil Hou^[3]
• Chen Yi-wen^[3]
• David Chao^[3]
• Kurt Hsiao^[4]
• Da-her Lin^[4]

Production

Development

On 10 December 2019, Singapore's mm2 Entertainment and Taiwan's CaiChang International and Good Films Workshop announced the series. It was based on the novel of the same name by Taiwanese novelist Xing Zi. The series would be directed by Donnie Lai, produced by Rita Chuang and choreographed by Jimmy Hung, with Kai Ko, Wang Po-chieh, Sonia Sui, Kuo Tzu-chien and Pipi Yao starring in lead roles.^[5][6] The series would consist of six episodes and the production cost of the first season was expected to exceed NT$180 million, making it the most expensive drama to be produced out of Taiwan.^[7][8] A pilot episode was planned to film in 2020, before the distributors were announced, and scheduled to be released in 2021.^[8][9] Production was ultimately postponed due to COVID-19.^[10] In November 2022, Hsueh Shih-ling, Buffy Chen and Johnny Yang were added to the cast.^[11]

Filming

Principal photography began on 14 November 2022, in Keelung, Taiwan.^[12] On 27 December 2022, a drone failed and crashed in front of Kai Ko while filming a close-up. The drone's blade sliced Ko's cheekbone and resulted in severe facial injuries. Ko was hospitalized and required 30 stitches.^[13][14] Production was suspended after the accident and resumed in 11 January 2023.^[14][15] Filming was wrapped on 5 March.^[16]

Release

The series was scheduled to premiere on Netflix in 2023.^[17]

References

1. Allie Hsieh (25 November 2022). "Netflix《乩身》7大看點！史上最貴台劇、柯震東為「三太子」王柏傑賣命降妖，宛如東方版「驅魔神探」！" (in Chinese). Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on 9 February 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
2. 林奕雯 (11 December 2019). "柯震東轉攻小螢幕變《乩身》 隋棠被郭子乾騙雙修" (in Chinese). Ming Weekly. Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
3. "台劇史上最高成本奇幻神作《乩身》柯震東入魂東方「康斯坦丁」" (in Chinese). NOVA. 30 September 2021. Archived from the original on 2 May 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
4. 陳郁文 (3 November 2022). "Netflix新台劇公開 張孝全《誰是被害者2》+柯震東《乩身》" (in Chinese). TVBS. Archived from the original on 14 November 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
5. 吳琬婷 (10 December 2019). "（影音）台劇斥資一集3000萬 柯震東扮東方版康斯坦汀" (in Chinese). Liberty Times. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
6. 洪文 (10 December 2019). "台灣影集《乩身》斥資1.8億！柯震東挑戰「東方驅魔神探」　搭配王柏傑演三太子" (in Chinese). ETToday. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
7. Cheung, Rainer (12 December 2019). "Kai Ko makes official showbiz return after drug scandal with Taiwan's most expensive drama". Asia One. Archived from the original on 6 March 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
8. "全新台式奇幻劇！柯震東化身「三太子乩身」為隋棠降妖除魔" (in Chinese). SET News. 11 December 2019. Archived from the original on 2 May 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
9. "柯震東《乩身》斬妖除魔 低潮5年首接台劇 食粥食飯靠今舖？" (in Chinese). HK01. 12 December 2019. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
10. 葉冠吟 (14 November 2022). "王柏傑「乩身」化身三太子 指揮柯震東鬼差事" (in Chinese). Central News Agency. Archived from the original on 12 January 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
11. 陳慧貞 (14 November 2022). "柯震東變「乩身」 王柏傑認了女聲耳邊哈氣「陪我玩」" (in Chinese). United Daily News. Archived from the original on 14 November 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
12. 林淑娟 (14 November 2022). "王柏傑演三太子前先跟祂擲筊！和「乩身」柯震東都不禁慾" (in Chinese). China Times. Archived from the original on 14 November 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
13. Lawes, Ruth (11 January 2023). "Kai Ko Chen-tung suffers 'serious disfigurement' after drone accident on set of Netflix drama Agent From Above". Metro. Archived from the original on 21 January 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
14. Ntim, Zac (11 January 2023). "Taiwanese Actor Kai Ko Suffers Serious Face Injury On The Set Of Netflix's 'Agent From Above'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 20 January 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
15. Hollister, Sean (14 January 2023). "Maybe don't stick flying bladed cameras in a movie star's face". The Verge. Archived from the original on 21 March 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
16. 鍾昀軒 (5 March 2023). "這是柯震東？才遭無人機毀容急送醫 他曬「片場崩壞照」不藏了" (in Chinese). SET News. Archived from the original on 21 March 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
17. Deng, Christy (26 December 2022). "【2023台劇推薦】最完整必看清單！Netflix懸疑台劇《模仿犯》、《台灣犯罪故事》、《乩身》" (in Chinese). Elle. Archived from the original on 3 January 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.

External links

• Agent from Above at IMDb