Netflix is making a big push for their Korean drama content, with a number of new Korean drama series coming to the streaming giant in the next several months. With Hallyu (Korean wave) on the rise thanks to the popularity of Korean pop music, the East Asian country’s TV series are also making a big splash on the global stage.
Netflix is taking advantage of this by regularly adding new Korean movies & TV shows for their subscribers. And based on what’s coming in the streaming platform, it seems like fans of the booming genre will have no scarcity when it comes to options in the next coming months. Netflix have been making a major effort to expand their output of foreign-language shows as their subscriber base becomes increasingly global, and Korea is a big part of that.
From your typical romantic series to thriller series, every Netflix subscriber will have a Korean drama to binge watch in the foreseeable future. Check out the list of K-series coming to the platform.
Bring It On, Ghost - October 1, 2019
Starring 2PM member/actor Ok Taec Yeon, Kim So Hyun, and Kwon Yul, Bring It On, Ghost is a romantic comedy series with a hint of supernatural elements that first aired on TvN in 2016. Park Bong Pal (Ok), who has the ability to see ghosts works as an exorcist to save up money in order to undergo surgery that can take away his special skills away. He meets Kim Hyun Ji (Kim), a wandering spirit who taps his help to find out a way for her to fully move on to the afterlife. Throughout their shenanigans, spread across 16 episodes on Netflix, the two find themselves falling in love with each other.
Cheese in the Trap - October 1, 2019
Based on a popular webtoon, Cheese in the Trap is about the exciting lives of a group off university friends. The 16-episode Netflix series focuses primarily on the difficult relationship of Hong Seol (Kim Go Eun) and her complicated sunabe (senior), Yoo Jung (Park Have Jin). However, having psychopathic tendencies, Jung drives Seol out of school. When she eventually returns, they begin an awkward relationship made much more complicated with the involvement of people from Jung’s past. The series first aired in 2016 on TvN.
Chicago Typewriter - October 1, 2019
The 2017 TvN drama Chicago Typewriter’s narrative spans 80 years, starting in the 1930s with three resistance fighters during the Japanese occupation in Korea. All have been reincarnated in the present time. One is Han Se Joo (Yoo Ah In), a best-selling writer struggling in his personal life; there’sJeon Seol (Im Soo Jung), a veterinarian and avid fan of Se Joo; and ghostwriter Yoo Jin Oh (Go Kyung Pyo). Despite living separately in the contemporary period, the three bands back together to solve a haunting mystery from their past that could very well spell their future. Chicago Typewriter hits Netflix on October 1.
Second 20s / Twenty Again - October 1, 2019
Starring original Hallyu actress, Choi Ji Woo as the lead, Ha No Ra, Twenty Again revolves around a mother wanting to experience the joys of college. After getting pregnant at 19, No Ra gave up her studies to be a devoted housewife and mother. Now that she’s 38, freshly diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and on the brink of a divorce, she decides to go back to school. Among her batchmates is her son and his girlfriend. To make things more complex, her soon-to-be ex-husband, as well as her former suitor from high school both teaches in the same university. It originally aired on TvN in 2015 for 16 episodes, but is now coming to Netflix.
Signal – October 1, 2019
Police procedural meets science fiction in this 2016 series starring Lee Ke Hoon, Kim Hey Soo and Cho Jin Woong. A mysterious walkie talkie allows communication between a detective in 2000 and a cold case profiler. The two fall into a good work rhythm as they not only able to solve crimes, but also prevent some of them from happening altogether. Things come to a head, however, when they stumble upon a long-standing murder case that apparently has some personal links to both of them. Signal received critical acclaim and has become one of the highest-rated cable dramas in South Korea, so it’s a logical choice for Netflix.
The K2 – October 1, 2019
A thriller series revolving around the complicated life of a mercenary soldier, Kim Je Ha who is hired as a bodyguard by a rich and powerful family in South Korea. Fueled by his rage to seek revenge for those who framed him for a murder he didn’t commit, he accepted the job in order to put his plans in motions, but he gets derailed when he unexpectedly falls in love with the daughter of his employer, Go Anna. K2 aired in 2016 on TvN for 16 episodes and stars Ji Chang Wook and Girls Generation member, Im Yoona.
Tomorrow with You - October 1, 2019
Airing on TvN in 2017, Tomorrow with You tells the story of a man, Yoo So Joon played by Lee Je Hoon who can travel back in time via a subway and foresees his death. He decided to marry Song Ma Rin, played by Shin Min Ah, in the hopes of avoiding his pre-set fate. Through various trials and tribulations, So Joon eventually learns to genuinely care and love his wife. This makes him much more motivated to not die and spend the rest of his life with her. Before coming to Netflix, the romantic Korean drama originally ran for 16 episodes.
Tunnel – October 1, 2019
Starring Choi Jin-hyuk, Yoon Hyun-min and Lee Yoo-young, Tunnel is 16-episode crime thriller is inspired by the Hwaseong serial murders - a string of 10 rapes and murders in the city of Hwaseong between 1986 and 1991. The show uses the concept of time travel as the lead detective is transported from 1986 30 years into the future and discovers that his case in the past and the future are linked together. Tunnel originally aired in 2017 on OCN and replaced the Korean version of the singing competition The Voice. Between the clever storytelling and narratives inspired from real-life events, it garnered a loyal following China, and Netflix will be hoping for a repeat of that.
Chief of Staff season 2 - November 2019
After releasing the first season of this South Korean political drama in June, Netflix is also rolling out the show’s next outing sometime next month. Originally airing on JTBC for 10 episodes, Chief of Staff packs a star-studded cast including Lee Jung-jae, Shin Min-a, Lee Elijah, Kim Dong-jun, Jung Jin-young, Kim Kap-soo, Jung Woong-in, and Im Won-hee. Chief of Staff puts a spotlight on politician aides who control the political landscape from behind the curtains. Season 2 will pick up with super adviser Jang Tae Joon (Lee) continuously working his way to the top of the political pyramid.
Kingdom Season 2 - Early-2020
Netflix’s first original Korean series Kingdom will be back for a second season sometime early next year. Kingdom is set during them medieval Joseon period and focuses on Crown Prince Yi Chang (Joo Ji Hoon) as he navigates the dangerous world of politics. After surviving the debacles in its premiere year, season 2 will see the royal embroiled in a conspiracy as he attempts to save his constituents from the mysterious plague that apparently turns them into zombies. Kingdom season 1 was released January of 2019, which might mean that its succeeding outing can also roll out around the same time frame.
Upcoming Netflix Original Korean Dramas - Late 2019/Early 2020
I Holo You - Also known as Me Alone and You, Netflix’s romantic sci-fi drama will star Go Sung Here and Yoon Hyun Min, with director Lee Sang Yeon helming the series. The narrative centers on Go’s successful character who suffers from aphasia (inability to recognize faces) and his chance encounter with a hologram.
School Nurse Ahn Eun Young - The Netflix show revolves around a new high school nurse who has a supernatural ability to chase ghosts. No word yet on who will play the title role, but fan-favorite Nam Joo Hyuk is set star opposite the lead role as a Korean literature teacher and potential love interest.
Human Lessons - Starring Kim Dong Hee, Jung Da Bin and Park Ju Hyun, the upcoming thriller series also called Extracurricular will be about a student who commits a crime in order to enter college. The Netflix series will also depict the real-life press students face in order to meet the high standards when it comes to excelling in their studies in South Korea.
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