New Chinese language television show in production

Agatha Christie Limited has collaborated with top Chinese streamer iQiyi and Shengjin Pictures to produce a new online drama series based on the Hercule Poirot stories. This is the first official Chinese language television adaptation of Agatha Christie's works.

Checkmate is set in Republican era China and will star Hu Yitian, Leon Zhang, and Viann Zhang. The show is directed by Zhang Weike (My Roommate is a Detective). Principal photography is underway in Huzhou, Zhejang Province.

The Poirot character is set to have a younger Chinese interpretation named Situ Yan - an extremely perceptive young man with great reasoning skills, empathy and attention to every tiny detail. He becomes a detective in the town of Harbin after he loses his job in a law firm in Peking, and each of the cases he investigates (alongside two new partners) are linked by an overall storyline.

The show is expected to launch in China in 2022.