The BBC has acquired critically-acclaimed series Tokyo Vice from Endeavor Content.

The 8 x 60 crime drama series co-produced by HBO Max, Endeavor Content and Japanese broadcaster WOWOW is based on American journalist Jake Adelstein's non-fiction first-hand account of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police beat.

Filmed on location in Tokyo and starring Golden Globe nominee Ansel Elgort as Adelstein, Academy Award nominee Ken Watanabe, Academy Award nominee Rinko Kikuchi alongside Rachel Keller, Ella Rumpf, Hideaki Ito, Show Kasamatsu and Tomohisa Yamashita, the series depicts the daily descent into the neon-soaked underbelly of Tokyo in the late ‘90s, where nothing and no one is truly what or who they seem.

The series is written and created by Tony Award-winning playwright J.T. Rogers and four-time Academy Award nominee and Emmy winner Michael Mann directed the pilot.

Sue Deeks, Head of Programme Acquisition, BBC, says: “The BBC are delighted to be the exclusive Free TV home of Tokyo Vice. With the first episode superbly orchestrated by Michael Mann, the series is a fascinating and immersive dive into the neon-lit underbelly of 1990’s Tokyo and a crime world dominated by the yakuza.”

The BBC has the second window in the UK with the free to air premiere and it will air later this year.

The series recently premiered on HBO Max in the US.

Tokyo Vice is co-produced by HBO Max, Endeavor Content and Japanese broadcaster WOWOW. J.T. Rogers and Michael Mann serve as Executive Producers along with Emmy® winner Alan Poul, Jake Adelstein, Ansel Elgort, Emmy® winner Emily Gerson Saines, Brad Kane, Destin Daniel Cretton, Ken Watanabe, Kayo Washio, and Academy Award® winner John Lesher.

Endeavor Content handles worldwide sales.