Prestigious creative teams do not get much bigger than this. FX has officially ordered an untitled crime drama pilot starring Havana Rose Liu, pairing Emmy-winning director Hiro Murai with celebrated Hong Kong auteur Wong Kar Wai.
The project comes from FX Productions and Searchlight Television, with cameras scheduled to start rolling on location in Bangkok later this month.
Developed directly from an original story concept by Wong, the series centres on a petty criminal, played by Liu, who unexpectedly inherits an ownership stake in a shadowy, ultra-wealthy multinational enterprise. The sudden windfall pulls her out of low-level street operations and plunges her straight into a cutthroat corporate oligarchy, where ruthless billionaires treat her unexpected arrival as an immediate existential danger.
Writing Talent Behind the Lens
Murai will direct the pilot from a script co-written by Charles Yu (Interior Chinatown) and Julia Cho (Turning Red, Elio).
Yu, Cho, and Murai also serve as executive producers alongside Carver Karaszewski, Claudia Shin, Kate Dean, Paul Schwartzman, and Wong.
The project marks an enticing blend of television and cinematic storytelling styles. Murai recently made history at the Emmy Awards, becoming the first Asian filmmaker to win the Comedy Directing Emmy for his work on Apple TV’s breakout series Widow’s Bay. The production set an all-time record with fourteen Emmy wins in a single evening, handing Murai the third Emmy trophy of his career. At FX, Murai remains an essential creative voice, also directing and executive producing the upcoming drama miniseries The Marriage Plot.
For Wong, whose classic films Chungking Express and In the Mood for Love redefined international cinema, the pilot represents another rare expansion into episodic television following his acclaimed Chinese period production Blossoms Shanghai.
A Rising Star Secures Her Biggest Lead Role
The pilot gives Liu her most prominent leading vehicle to date. After breaking out as part of the comedy ensemble in Emma Seligman’s 2023 hit Bottoms, Liu has quickly become one of the most sought-after young performers in the film industry.
Her slate includes collaborations with notable auteurs, including Nicolas Winding Refn’s Her Private Hell, Daniel Roher’s Tuner, and John Carney’s Power Ballad. She will next appear in Jesse Eisenberg’s The Debut, releasing on 11 December, Jenny Suen’s Peaches alongside Sophie Thatcher, and Arkasha Stevenson’s untitled bachelor party horror feature for A24.
With Wong providing the original underworld framework, Yu and Cho shaping the teleplay, and Murai directing Liu through the neon-soaked alleys of Bangkok, the untitled project enters production as one of the most exciting pilots currently on the FX development roster.
