TVB Puts Bus Hostage Crisis in New Drama

Although it's been more than half of a year since the Manila Bus Hostage Crisis happened, but it's still a pain to most Hong Kong residents.


The Manila Bus Hostage Crisis

A dismissed Philippine National Police Officer hijacked a Hong Kong tour bus and took the Hong Kong tourists as hostages in an attempt to resume his previous position as a police officer. Eight hostages were dead in the end, and some of the other hostages are now facing long term injuries from the incident.

TVB's new drama "Flying Tigers"/"Special Duties Unit" (tentative name) starring Joe Ma and Jessica Hsuan was filming a bus hostage scene yesterday, very similar to the Manila hostage crisis. The scene is about Kenneth Ma, who plays the villain, takes over a tour bus and demands the police to release his wife (JJ Jia). He goes crazy when he knows his injured wife dies.

The scene is similar to the hostage crisis happened in Manila, Philippines last year. Not only it's also a bus hostage crisis, it's also similar in which the hostage taker is emotion-driven by the fact his close family member is held by the police force.

Actors filming the scene was not so willing to film this scene. Jessica Hsuan is worried this part would rub salt into the wound of victims from the real hostage crisis. Kenneth Ma, whose role resembles the real hostage taker, expressed he has no control and can only follow the script.

As one of the hostages in the scene, Christine Kuo believes the screenwriter just wants to show the message the bad can't win the good and didn't purposely try to relate it to the unfortunate incident. Her boyfriend in the drama Oscar Leung thinks similar stories have been seen in other movies; it's just now everyone is being more sensitive to it.

Source: Oriental Daily
Translated by: Kay's Entertainment