iWorld
Netflix, Dark Horse Entertainment extend its partnership
Mumbai: OTT platform Netflix and Dark Horse Entertainment have extended their partnership. Under this multi-year deal, Dark Horse will continue to give Netflix a first look at its IP for both film and TV.
Netflix and Dark Horse recently collaborated on the third season of The Umbrella Academy, which in its first four weeks reached the Netflix Global Top 10 in TV in 91 countries with 283.55 million hours viewed (as of July 17, 2022).
New projects in active development under the Dark Horse Entertainment banner include:
Bang! will star Idris Elba (The Harder They Fall, Concrete Cowboy, Luther) and will be directed by David Leitch (Bullet Train, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2).
Based on the comic series by Matt Kindt and Wilfredo Torres, the feature film adaptation of the spy thriller will be written by Kindt (Ninjak vs. the Valiant Universe) and Zak Olkewicz (Bullet Train, Fear Street Part 2: 1978).
When a terrorist cult sets out to start the apocalypse with a series of novels meant to brainwash their readers, the world’s most celebrated spy is sent to track down and kill the author responsible.
Mind MGMT will see Curtis Gwinn (Stranger Things) executive produce this series adaptation of the comic book series by Matt Kindt. A young woman stumbles onto the top-secret Mind Management program. Her ensuing journey involves weaponised psychics, hypnotic advertising, talking dolphins, and seemingly immortal pursuers, as she attempts to find the man who was Mind MGMT’s greatest success—and its most devastating failure. But in a world where people can rewrite reality itself, can she trust anything she sees?
Additional Dark Horse projects in development with Netflix include Revenge Inc., a drama series focused on a secret, underground company that specialises in revenge with Matthew Arnold as showrunner/executive producer and executive producers Mike Richardson, Keith Goldberg and Chris Tongue, as well as Lady Killer, an action thriller film about a 1950s housewife leading a secret life as a highly-trained killer for hire, with Blake Lively starring and producing, based on the comic series by Joelle Jones and Jamie S. Rich.
Previous Dark Horse Entertainment releases include the Netflix film Polar, starring Mads Mikkelsen; the Netflix animated series Samurai Rabbit: The Usagi Chronicles, returning later this year with a second season; and the animated film Chickenhare and the Hamster of Darkness, which recently spent four weeks in the Netflix Film (English) Top 10.
iWorld
JioHotstar enters micro-drama space with 100 shows under Tadka banner
Short-form push targets 300M users as content meets commerce in new format
MUMBAI: JioStar has made a bold play in India’s fast-growing micro-drama space, rolling out over 100 short-form shows under its new Tadka banner on JioHotstar, timed with the massive viewership surge of the Indian Premier League 2026.
The scale of the launch signals clear intent. Rather than testing the waters, the company has dived in headfirst, releasing a wide slate of content on day one. Each show is designed for quick consumption, with episodes running 60 to 90 seconds in a vertical format tailored for mobile-first audiences.
The move comes as India’s micro-drama market, currently valued at around $300 million, is projected to grow tenfold to over $3 billion by 2030. Globally, the format has already proven its mettle, with China’s micro-drama sector recording explosive growth in recent years.
What sets this rollout apart is its built-in monetisation strategy. The shows are free to watch and ad-supported, with brand integrations woven directly into storylines from the outset. It reflects a broader shift where content and commerce are increasingly intertwined, rather than operating in silos.
The timing is equally strategic. With more than 300 million users already tuning in for IPL action, JioHotstar is effectively turning cricket’s biggest stage into a discovery engine for its new format.
The company is not entering an empty arena. Early movers like Kuku TV, MX Player and platforms backed by Zee Entertainment Enterprises have already laid the groundwork, building audiences and validating demand for snackable storytelling.
Now, with scale, distribution and advertiser interest aligning, the big players are stepping in. For JioStar, Tadka may well serve as a proving ground for the next evolution of digital entertainment, where every minute counts and every second sells.
If the bet pays off, India’s next big content wave might just arrive in under 90 seconds.
