Racy AI dramas go viral despite lack of age checks
A list of popular titles, left, and the home screen of DramaWave, a short-form drama platform. The platform features numerous provocative titles, including “Craving My Wrong Brother” and “Beasts in the Tent.” Captured from DramaWave
The father of her child is the Dragon King, ruler of the dragon realm. But he has no idea the child exists. After falling in love with the Dragon King, a human woman gives birth to a half-human, half-dragon child and raises the baby alone. When the child develops unusual symptoms while growing up, the woman sets off for the Dragon King's kingdom in a bid to save the child. There, she reunites with the Dragon King, and the two find themselves drawn to each other once again.
This is the plot of an artificial intelligence (AI)-generated short-form drama that Yoon, a 23-year-old university student, recently came across on Instagram Reels. Initially put off by its absurd premise and sensational storyline, she soon found herself hooked.
“A plot that would have seemed forced if acted out by real actors was easier to enjoy like an animated film once I knew it was AI-generated," Yoon told the Hankook Ilbo on Tuesday.
AI-generated short-form dramas are gaining explosive popularity, fueling rapid growth in the market for such content. According to Wiseapp·Retail, a market analytics service based on real-time app usage and payment data, major short-form drama platforms in Korea recorded a combined 2.98 million monthly active users in August, excluding duplicate users. That was a 3.3-fold increase from 900,000 in the same month last year.
Short-form dramas typically run for one to two minutes per episode, with a full series consisting of around 50 episodes. Their storylines revolve around revenge, romances with wealthy heirs, hidden identities and family secrets, with conflicts and plot twists driving the narrative. While the genre resembles conventional makjang dramas — melodramas built around outrageous plots and extreme conflicts — viewers cite the AI-generated protagonists' striking looks, lavish fantasy sequences and fast-paced storytelling as key attractions.
“I even found it entertaining when an error made a character appear with three hands,” said Kwon, 26, an avid viewer.
The first few episodes are usually released for free as promotional clips on YouTube or social media. To watch an entire series, viewers must pay for subscriptions to platforms such as DramaWave, DramaBox and ReelShort, costing around 20,000 won ($14) a week or more than 50,000 won a month.
Viewers are still willing to open their wallets. Heo, 27, who has binge-watched around 500 series across five platforms, said the dramas were ideal for “getting a quick dopamine hit without having to think too much.” He also shared a tip: “If you change the language setting to English on a platform, you can access a wider selection of international titles.”
Posts also circulate on social media recruiting people to share accounts and split subscription fees, a practice known as buncheol, or cost-sharing.
“Improvements in AI video quality and repeated exposure are reducing viewers' resistance to the content, eventually turning that exposure into consumption,” said Yoo Seung-chul, a professor at Ewha Womans University's Division of Communication and Media.
However, the genre has drawn criticism for its sexist portrayals of women, who are frequently depicted as sexual objects or passive characters, as well as its gratuitous nudity and other sexually suggestive scenes.
In one drama, for example, the female protagonist is sold to an elderly man and forced into marriage. After attempting to escape, she is caught and beaten while tied up with ropes. She wears tattered clothing that leaves much of her body exposed. The character who comes to her rescue is the male king of a wolf tribe.
“By combining sexually idealized appearances with submissive personalities and turning violence and expulsion into sources of dramatic entertainment, these dramas reinforce contempt for women,” said Hong Nam-hee, an academic research professor at Yonsei University's Institute of Media and Arts. “Mass production through AI and personalized content exposure can repeatedly reproduce and amplify gender stereotypes.”
Another concern is that age restrictions and other regulations remain lax despite the sexually explicit nature of the content.
Short-form drama platforms are not designated as operators authorized to determine their own age ratings, meaning paid content must undergo prior classification by the Korea Media Rating Board. Nevertheless, many titles can be watched without logging in or verifying viewers' ages, even when their very first episodes contain explicit dialogue and scenes suggesting sexual transactions and sexual intercourse.
According to data submitted by the Korea Media Rating Board to the office of Rep. Kim Seung-soo of the ruling People Power Party, only 293, or 6.4 percent, of the 4,572 short-form video titles classified between April last year and August this year were rated for adults only.
Last year, the board filed complaints against 30 overseas platforms that had failed to comply with mandatory rating requirements or had only partially met them, and recommended that relevant authorities take action.
Some experts argue that restrictions should also be imposed on advertisements embedded in YouTube videos and social media posts, which often serve as viewers' first point of contact with short-form dramas.
“Given the nature of this content, the boundary between advertisements and full episodes is blurred,” said Yoo Hyun-jae, a professor in the department of communication at Sogang University. “Regulatory standards that take viewers' ages into account should also apply to advertisements exposed to the general public.”
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.