Industry

ViacomCBS International Studios and Wattpad WEBTOON Studios, the fan-driven global entertainment and publishing arm for WEBTOON and Wattpad, today announced a new global partnership to source emerging content and creatives from around the world to develop a slate of original series based on hit Wattpad and WEBTOON stories.

Under the deal, Wattpad WEBTOON Studios and ViacomCBS International Studios will work together to identify stories from Wattpad and WEBTOON’s deep global IP libraries of digital comics and stories from some of the world’s most exciting indie authors. Wattpad WEBTOON Studios and ViacomCBS International Studios’ production arm, VIS, will co-produce content for ViacomCBS’ networks and platforms, including its global premium streaming service Paramount+.

Through the partnership with Wattpad WEBTOON Studios, ViacomCBS International Studios will gain access to data-backed insights and top IP from WEBTOON’s global catalogue of mega-hit digital comics and novels from diverse indie authors on Wattpad. With Wattpad WEBTOON Studios’ audience geography and sentiment insights, the companies will identify local and regional hits with global appeal, spanning Latin America, Europe, the UK, and other international markets.

The deal is the first major global partnership from Wattpad WEBTOON Studios since merging the entertainment and publishing divisions from WEBTOON and Wattpad in June 2021. Bringing together the 166 million fans from each platform, along with massive catalogues of new IP from digital comic creators and indie authors, Wattpad WEBTOON Studios creates fan-driven entertainment.

The deal arrives as Wattpad WEBTOON Studios continues to grow its footprint in Hollywood and international entertainment markets, with more than 100 projects in development or production around the world, and a growing number of hits on screens. The company recently wrapped production on a film adaptation of Float, based on Kate Marchant’s hit Wattpad romance of the same name. Wattpad WEBTOON Studios is producing the project alongside Lionsgate, Collective Pictures, and Brightlight Pictures.