Anytime a Netflix series spends its first weekend in the streamer’s Top 10 is a good sign that the stars have aligned at catching viewers’ attention. This past weekend revealed a promising future for new Thai drama “Mad Unicorn” since the seven episode limited series that dropped on May 29 spent the weekend in the #1 spot for series in Thailand. And while that news is very good for Thailand and the APAC region, Netflix is clearly looking at an opportunity to bring more eyeballs to Thai productions. The series dropped in over 190 countries and was viewed by 1.6 million households, ranking fourth in the streamer’s weekly top 10 for non-English shows.
The high-adrenaline series focuses on ambitious entrepreneur Santi (Ice-Natara Nopparatayapon), a native of Thailand’s low-income mountainous Chiang Mai region, who comes to Bangkok with lofty dreams of lifting his family out of poverty. Santi soon comes up with a billion-dollar idea of starting a low-cost shipping business in Thailand but partners with a wealthy tycoon named Kanin (Ek-Thaneth Warakulnukroh), who ends up stealing his idea and pushing him out of the company. More determined than ever, Santi works to do everything he can to keep his dreams alive and possibly exact some revenge on Kanin in the process.
“Inspired by the Thai business world, ‘Mad Unicorn’ is the story of a self-made entrepreneur and a David vs Goliath showdown,” says Malobika Banerji, Netflix’s senior director of content, Southeast Asia.
Themes like the battle between ordinary man and giant, as well as those of resilience, ambition and redemption are exactly what Netflix believes will draw in international viewers without sacrificing the distinct attention devoted to maintaining an authentic local world flavor.
“We make Thai shows for Thai audiences first and foremost. We work with local storytellers and talent to create something authentically Thai, because that’s what audiences here want to see,” says Banerji. “But it’s often these truly local titles that have the power to reach audiences globally because of their authentic storytelling and universal themes. Audiences everywhere can connect with these ideas, especially when combined with our access to subtitles and dubbing.”
The fact that ‘Mad Unicorn’ is inspired by a true story only adds more weight to the compelling tale, as Nottapon Boonprakob, the show’s director and one of its writers, found out when he first became involved in the project in 2021.
Tasked by producers Jira Milagool and Vanridee Pongsittisak to interview Kamsan Saleem, who came from meager beginnings to create Thai-based Flash Express courier delivery serivce, Boonprakob discovered a hugely relatable story that would work as inspiration for the series.
“The first day was a four hour interview and I was blown away by [Saleem’s] story because this man is the first unicorn startup of Thailand,” Boonprakob told Variety during the show’s Bangkok premiere event last week. “His sincerity really blew me away and then we started developing the story in the series.”
In crafting the series, the real-person inspiration worked well with Boonprakob, who had primarily worked in the documentary film space and had never helmed a scripted project before. “Making a documentary is about telling a real story, following the story, watching it, and finding a way to weave it together,” he says. “But whether it’s directing a documentary or a fictional story, the responsibility to the audience is similar. We have to make people feel happy, make them want to follow these stories.” He clearly achieved all of that given that happiness extends to Banerji, who beamed at the end product of the series.
“The cast give breakthrough performances and the local crew have created a world-class production,” she says. “We are thrilled to support director Nottapon Boonprakob with his series debut, he’s infused the story with dazzling energy and real, human drama.”
The timing couldn’t be better for “Mad Unicorn” given Thailand has been very visible on the entertainment landscape lately with recent seasons of popular series like Netflix’s “The Night Agent” and HBO Max’s “The White Lotus,” the upcoming FX series “Alien: Earth,” as well as the upcoming July big screen release, “Jurassic World Rebirth,” the streamer is committing to more stories that originate in the “Land of Smiles.” “We’re not just making foreign productions in Thailand, we’re partnering with local creators and talent to tell authentically Thai stories. That ongoing investment supports the local creative industry and brings more Thai stories to global audiences,” says Banerji.
“Mad Unicorn” also appears to be the tip of the iceberg in what’s to come for Netflix to the level that they’re investing in preparing the local community for employment coming down the pike. “We’re growing our local slate each year, and training more local production crews to create world-class storytelling from Thailand,” she says.
Malobika Banerji, senior director of content in South East Asia at Netflix
