Lionsgate TV developing drama based on Shohei Ohtani interpreter scandal

Shohei Ohtani (Source: Mark Edward Harris/ZUMA Press Wire)

Lionsgate Television is developing a scripted drama series based around this year’s gambling scandal surrounding Japanese baseball star Shohei Ohtani.

Ohtani’s meteoric rise led to a 10-year, $700m contract with the LA Dodgers – the biggest contract in American sports team history.

Scott Delman and Albert Chen are attached to produce the series, which will explore how, only a day into the 2024 MLB season in March, news broke that Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, allegedly stole $16m from the baseball player to pay off gambling debts.

The Dodgers fired Mizuhara following the allegations and he later turned himself in to federal authorities. Investigations by the Department of Justice and Major League Baseball are continuing.

Delman’s past television credits include Station 11 for HBO Max and he has also served as a producer on several Broadway hits, including The Book of Mormon, Death of a Salesman and All The Way.

Chen wrote the sports gambling book Billion Dollar Fantasy, and was the co-creator, co-host and producer of the podcast All American from Stitcher and SiriusXM, and also served as senior editor at Sports Illustrated.

“With a strong track record of creating daring, boundary-pushing series, Lionsgate Television is the perfect partner to bring this unbelievable story to the screen,” said Delman. “In addition, Albert’s extensive sports journalism background will enable us to connect the dots to make sense of the startling turn of events we’ve seen play out on the world stage.”

Max Elins is overseeing the project for Lionsgate Television.