05/09/2022

Since its premier on 10th August Checkmate, the first TV adaptation of Agatha Christie in China, has quickly became one of the biggest hit shows in China.

iQiyi set the premier date for this new series hit the critical summer season peak for viewership in China. Summer holiday season sees the youth audiences which are the strongest audiences in China turning to VOD platforms to watch new programmes on offer. As one of the strongest lineups for iQiyi’s summer release slate, Checkmate did not disappoint.

Even before its release, pre-books for Checkmate on iQiyi had reached over 2.5 million. Within 24 hours of the first 3 episodes being premiered at 8pm on 10th August, iQiyi’s Internal Popularity Score for this new series jumped to 7,919, which is one of the highest scores of the year. In the following weeks, Checkmate has stood firmly at No.1 on iQiyi’s Biggest Jumper Chart, No.2 on the Hottest Viewing Chart and No.3 on the Most Searched Chart.

Checkmate is also ranked in the top 5 on all independent ratings charts in China. Furthermore, has appeared 325 times on Most Searched Charts across all search engines and social media in China, with viewers excitedly talking about the story plots and lead characters of this groundbreaking Chinese series.

With Checkmate premiered on iQiyi for less than a month, there have already been several hundred million viewings of this new series, making this first TV adaptation of Agatha Christie in China a phenomenal success.

Watch the making of Checkmate here:
The Making of Checkmate