{"url":"https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-10-28/amazon-mgm-studios-japan-doubles-investment","markdown_url":"https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-10-28/amazon-mgm-studios-japan-doubles-investment.md","title":"Amazon MGM Studios Doubles Japan Original Content Investment","headline":"Amazon MGM Studios Japan Doubles Original Content Investment, Buddy Marini Says at TIFFCOM","description":"Amazon MGM Studios Japan doubled its investment in original Japanese films and series, head Buddy Marini said at TIFFCOM.","section":"Expansion","published_at":"2026-10-28T07:32:04+00:00","modified_at":"2026-10-28T07:32:04+00:00","author":"News Desk","key_takeaways":["Buddy Marini, Amazon MGM Studios' head of Japan since March, said the studio has doubled its investment in original Japanese content.","Amazon MGM Studios is producing The Apothecary Diaries with Toho, starring Mana Ashida as Maomao, for Prime Video in 2028.","Amazon MGM Studios partnered with Wowow on Chloe And Emma, streaming on Prime Video since June 2026."],"companies":[{"name":"Amazon MGM Studios","is_primary":true,"profile_url":"https://akta.pro/company-profiles/00q2m6z/amazon-mgm-studios","website":"https://amazonmgmstudios.com"},{"name":"Studio Dragon","is_primary":false,"profile_url":"https://akta.pro/company-profiles/003eccm/studio-dragon","website":"http://www.studiodragon.net"},{"name":"Wild Sheep Content","is_primary":false,"profile_url":"https://akta.pro/company-profiles/00223w3/wild-sheep-content","website":"https://www.wildsheepcontent.com"}],"source":{"publisher":"Deadline","title":"Amazon MGM Studios Japan To Double Investment In Original Content; ‘One Piece’ & ‘Kingdom’ Producers Talk IP Strategies – TIFFCOM","url":"https://deadline.com/2026/10/one-piece-amazon-mgm-studios-japan-kingdom-tiffcom-1237206872/"},"other_sources":[],"tags":["Expansion","Amazon MGM Studios","Studio Dragon","Wild Sheep Content"],"body_markdown":"Amazon MGM Studios has doubled its investment in original Japanese content, including live-action films and series, its new head of Japan, Buddy Marini, said at TIFFCOM. Marini gave no figure for the investment, [Deadline](https://deadline.com/2026/10/one-piece-amazon-mgm-studios-japan-kingdom-tiffcom-1237206872/) reported from the opening day of the market.\n\n## Marini Outlines Amazon MGM's Japan Slate\n\n[Amazon MGM Studios](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/00q2m6z/amazon-mgm-studios) is the film and television production and distribution studio of Amazon, acquired in March 2022, making premium theatrical and streaming content for Prime Video. Marini, a former head of Warner Bros Japan who has held his post since March, said the studio works with partners including Korea's [Studio Dragon](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/003eccm/studio-dragon), and Japan's Credeus, Toho, TV Tokyo and Wowow.\n\n\"Amazon Prime has been acting as an aggregator for content, and we grew that business very successfully, but going forward we wanted to focus more on original content – not just in Japan but worldwide,\" Marini said. He said the slate is made primarily for Japanese audiences but is intended to travel globally, across drama, anime and theatrical films.\n\nMarini introduced an adaptation of the light novel series The Apothecary Diaries, starring Mana Ashida as Maomao, co-produced by Amazon MGM Studios and Toho and set to stream exclusively worldwide on Prime Video in 2028. He also cited Chloe And Emma, a live-action manga adaptation made with Wowow that has streamed on Prime Video since June 2026, and Criminal (Hanzaisha), directed by Daishi Matsunaga, which debuted on the streamer in March. Wowow and emole released the original short drama You Want a Child on BUMP on October 21, 2026, according to Prtimes.\n\n\"High-quality content is in demand so we're going to double our investment to reach an international standard and attract global audiences,\" Marini said.\n\n## Amazon MGM's Studio Restructuring and AI Push\n\nAmazon MGM Studios restructured its Business Affairs team in June 2026, dissolving the centralized function into three teams embedded within Film, TV and International Originals, according to akta.pro [company records](https://akta.pro/company-data). Dan Scharf departed, and Mandy Schaffer, formerly of Netflix, and Craig Muhlrad were appointed to lead the new structure. In May 2026 the studio launched the GenAI Creators' Fund and the Project Nara AI production platform at the AI on the Lot conference, greenlighting three animated series: Punky Duck, Love Diana Music Hunters and Cupcake & Friends.\n\n## Earlier Amazon MGM Deals Before TIFFCOM\n\nAmazon MGM Studios acquired the dark romance package Butcher & Blackbird from Lyrical Media and Embrace for Prime Video, with Chris McKay directing and Emma Laird and Thomas Doherty starring, Yahoo reported in October 2026. The same month, Deadline reported that Mia McKenna-Bruce joined the romance Throttled, directed by Nzingha Stewart and starring Nicole Wallace and Julio Peña. Yahoo also reported that Amazon MGM licensed the documentary The Telepathy Tapes, based on Ky Dickens' podcast, for streaming on Prime Video on February 24, 2027.\n\n## TIFFCOM's Three-Day Run\n\nTIFFCOM runs for three days, from October 28 to 30, at the Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Trade Center in Hamamatsucho. The Apothecary Diaries is set to stream on Prime Video in 2028.\n","publisher":{"name":"News for Agent","url":"https://newsforagent.com"}}