Group 41: A 10-Episode Series on the DEA's First Asian-American Squad

Derek Tsang, known for Better Days and 3 Body Problem, has taken on the role of director and executive producer for a new true-crime limited series. The project, named Group 41, is currently being pitched to industry executives in Taipei. The series focuses on a specific unit within the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration that operated during the 1980s.

The show is structured as ten episodes, each lasting 45 minutes. Jonah Greenberg developed the project through his company, Salty Pictures. The story begins in New York City in 1986. At that time, the DEA focused its resources on Colombian cocaine cartels and Italian Mafia families. A small team of Asian-American agents worked alongside an Irish prosecutor known as The Dragon Lady.

This unit, designated as Group 41, became the first squad to target No. 4 heroin. The drug entered the United States through networks that received little attention. Over the next decade, the group shifted from an underfunded unit to an elite international task force. Their targets included Johnny Kon, a Hong Kong crime boss with a triad empire across five continents. They also pursued Johnny Onionhead Eng, a Chinatown gangster, and Khun Sa, a warlord in the Golden Triangle who commanded a narco-army of 20,000 soldiers.

Greenberg co-wrote the source material with Marc Iserlis and Aidan Swift. Both men will serve as writers and producers on the series. Greenberg, a former managing director at CAA’s China office, argued that surveillance technology gives police an unfair advantage in modern dramas. He stated that in the 1980s, the danger was more tangible. Agents and criminals carried guns, and going undercover involved significant risk.

The creator noted that the media largely overlooked these cases at the time. Audiences in the 1980s preferred shows like Miami Vice and stories about Rudy Giuliani’s prosecutions of Italian mobsters. Greenberg described the project as an underdog story about a war on drugs that was won but remains unknown to the public. He sees potential for multiple seasons within the ten-year saga, with Khun Sa serving as a final target.

The source material is an 180-page nonfiction book titled The Incredible Story of D.E.A. Group 41 & The Rise and Fall of the Asian Heroin Trade. The book is scheduled for publication next year. The production team has the cooperation of the real people involved. Tiffany Yu-chia Chen’s company, Each Other Films, is a co-production partner. Adam Berkowitz of Lenore Entertainment Group is serving as an executive producer.

The project has been in development for seven years. The next steps involve finding a writer-showrunner and attaching cast members. The team plans to pitch the series to platforms next year. Greenberg said he remains committed to the project because it tells the story of people driven by purpose, such as Cathy Palmer and the agents of Group 41. He compared their code to the character in the film Serpico.

The team is currently at the Taiwan Creative Content Fest, which runs from November 6 to 9 at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center. They are looking to understand how local incentives can help offset the budget. They are also exploring distribution opportunities in Asia. The goal is to secure production, financing, and potentially distribution efficiently before approaching U.S. platforms.