TBS commits $150 million to Legendary and a Japanese-content push

By Tom Whitfield

The $150 million equity investment that TBS Group made in Legendary Entertainment earlier this year anchors its global-content push, Setoguchi Katsuaki said at a Thursday morning TIFFCOM session.

At the content market of the Tokyo International Film Festival, Watanabe Shinya, president of the global business division at TBS Holdings, presented TBS Group’s overseas strategy.

Setoguchi Katsuaki, executive officer of the same division and president and CEO of The Seven and The Seven U.S., spoke alongside him about accelerating the group’s global business.

Three partnerships define the plan

• Legendary Entertainment. Setoguchi said the companies’ matching needs drove the deal: TBS wants global hits in global markets, while Legendary tracks Japanese manga, anime and novels as potential live-action source material. TBS will act as cultural translator.
• Studio Monowa. The new joint venture with CJ ENM and U-Next Holdings combines TBS Group with CJ ENM’s global-standard production capabilities to develop IP intended to resonate worldwide.
• Banijay Entertainment. TBS Group said Banijay is partnering on local adaptations of “Sasuke: Ninja Warrior.” Variety content and game shows remain central to the push beyond Western markets.

Setoguchi said that 20 years ago he saw a gap between Korean and Japanese studios’ production capabilities. He had not expected Korean cultural output to become a daily presence worldwide.

“Everywhere you go around the world, K-content and K-drama, they are a part of everybody’s everyday lives,” Setoguchi said.

He now wants comparable reach for Japanese content, framing the mission as spreading it worldwide and inspiring global love for Japan. Setoguchi said his mission was “instead of working to generate a profit to TBS, I would be working to establish a new genre of J-content.” He also called on the Japanese industry to work together to find global reach for Japanese IP.

Setoguchi said the team conceived “Kasso” as street-culture IP from the beginning, not merely a TV-program framework. TBS plans rollouts in the U.S. and China.

Setoguchi said The Seven aims to create the next obsession for a global audience, with its production collaboration on “Alice in Borderland” as a starting point. He said the company’s challenge runs through 2030 and beyond into 2040. He placed The Seven’s ambitions across the U.S., Europe and Asia, with Africa as an uncultivated market.

Watanabe said “Sasuke: Ninja Warrior,” now in its third decade on air, has local adaptations in 25 countries. NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior” is in its 18th season, with Seasons 19 and 20 greenlit.

Watanabe said the format reaches 170 countries, continues to grow globally and is the first TBS sports entertainment property to air globally.

Those figures describe reach, not audience size. The presentation supplied no ratings, audience totals or revenue figures for the format, and 25 countries with local versions is a different measure from a 170-country footprint.

James Townley, chief content officer, development, at Banijay Entertainment, discussed the brand’s value and clear format USP. Ella Brahmachari, ITV Studios’ brand manager for “Ninja Warrior UK,” said the show is aspirational because its athletes are amateurs rather than professionals, which helps audiences feel involved.

Thomas Goseberg of RTL Studios, which produces the German adaptation, said a second golden age of the show is coming. He said its appeal lies in challenge and accomplishment.

Watanabe flagged the program’s 30th anniversary in 2027. He also said it inspired a new obstacle discipline in modern pentathlon at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Watanabe said TBS is pursuing a 360-degree experience through indoor parks in the U.K., Germany and the U.S., alongside merchandise, licensing and placement advertising within the show and its local adaptations.

He called exporting the properties as expandable IP the priority. TBS’s overseas bases include The Seven in Los Angeles and TBS International in New York. The company also plans European bases to strengthen sales.

Setoguchi cited anime and manga as evidence of global interest in Japanese culture. He said J-content has not achieved the same level of acceptance. TBS needs to create a market from scratch and grow a new category of J-content, the executives said.

What does this change for audiences?

For audiences, the practical change is a fuller production pipeline, but not a dated slate. NBC has greenlit Seasons 19 and 20 of “American Ninja Warrior,” and local “Sasuke: Ninja Warrior” versions continue. “Kasso” has stated destinations, but no premiere dates; most proposed J-content projects have neither schedules nor audience targets.

Until dated launches and audience data arrive, the $150 million plan is infrastructure, not proof of a global hit.