After months of holding auditions in universities in Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore, Los Angeles, and China, the official members of the Flower 4 or F4 for the 2018 remake of the hit Taiwanese drama Meteor Garden has finally been revealed.
Sixteen years after it originally premiered, Angie Chai, the show’s creator, announced that the show’s new version will be a “fuller—and flashier—adaptation of the books.” It would also stick closer to the storyline in the manga.
The new members of F4 introduced on Tuesday were Taipei native Darren Cheng, 22, and Chinese actors Dylan Wang, 19, Connor Leong, 23, and Caesar Wu, 21. The photos of them also graced Bazaar Taiwan early this week billing them as the “youngest and tallest” of all the F4 groups.
According to a statement, they were cast for their “likeable personalities,” described as a mix of “warm and bright persona with hints of playfulness, stylish appearance, and versatile individuality.”
Meanwhile, in a press conference held on Thursday, the producer of the series also introduced up-and-coming Chinese actress Shen Yue to play the iconic role Shan Cai.
The remake is reportedly going to have a budget of over 720 million New Taiwan Dollars ($23.74 million) and the series would be larger than the original.
Based on the Japanese Manga Hana Yori Dango, the first Meteor Garden series was first aired in the Philippines by ABS-CBN in 2003. Jerry Yan, Vic Zhou, Vanness Wu and Ken Chu were the actors who played F4 back then. Meanwhile, the Korean version, titled Boys Over Flowers, launched the international career of actor Lee Min Ho.
ABS-CBN has earned the rights for the remake of Meteor Garden, the Taiwanese drama that took Asia by storm during the 2000s.
Meteor Garden, which tells the story of a girl who finds herself the apple of the eyes of four rich, handsome students at her university, collectively called the F4, after standing up to their rampant bullying, huge popularity in Taiwan and across Asia, spawning remakes in Japan and South Korea. It was first aired in the Philippines on ABS-CBN in 2003.
Nickie Wang