The World Between Us returns with Vic Chou as a grieving dad

Season 2 of the hit Taiwanese drama has a new cast and story

- Jan Lee

When Taiwanese drama The World Between Us premiered in 2019, Taiwanese producer Jayde Lin had no idea if it would be well received by critics and audiences because of what she called its "hardcore" themes.

The series chronicled the fallout of a mass shooting at a movie theatre from various perspectives and discussed hefty social issues such as the death penalty, mental health support and media sensationalism.

But it ended up being a huge hit, winning six prizes at Taiwan's Golden Bell Awards, including Best Television Series. It also scored a 9.4 rating out of 10 on Chinese review site Douban.

A second season has finally arrived with a new cast and story. The upcoming series, slated to premiere in Taiwan in 2025, follows over 20 years six families whose lives have been affected by a major case of arson.

While in town for the Asia TV Forum & Market at Sands Expo and Convention Centre on Dec 5, Lin and Taiwanese stars Vic Chou, Hsueh Shih-ling and Nikki Hsieh shared five things about what to expect.

1. A 20-YEAR EPIC

As The World Between Us 2 spans more than two decades, several cast members were subject to de-ageing technology, which required them to have black dots pasted on their faces for certain scenes.

Hsieh (Light The Night, 2021 to 2022), 39, said: "I was very scared that I would break out in laughter seeing the dots, but my very first scene involving de-ageing was not light-hearted, but very emotional, so I got used to it very quickly."

Producer Lin said the de-ageing is only a small part of making the story believable. The 10-parter, which has more than 50 characters, was reportedly filmed with resources normally allocated to three drama series.