Actor Jung Il-woo makes Japanese debut with Amazon thriller 'Criminal'Japanese director Daishi Matsunaga expressed deep satisfaction with his collaboration with actor Jung Il-woo in the Japanese original series "Criminal," streaming on Amazon's Prime Video. "I have long been influenced by Korean cinema, so presenting this series in Korea holds immense personal significance for me," Matsunaga said during a press conference in Seoul, Thursday. "Jung left a strong impression on me, and seeing his performance in 'Highway Family' (a 2022 Korean movie) convinced me that he had untapped potential I wanted to bring out." Based on the popular novel by Ai Ota, "Criminal" follows a detective, a journalist and a survivor who team up to track down a huge conspiracy triggered by a random murder. The seven-part crime thriller debuted globally on Amazon's streaming platform Prime Video on July 17 and has held the top spot in Japan for three consecutive weeks. "I would like to express my gratitude for the immense popularity," Jung said. "While it is a mystery thriller, the story follows the characters from an observer’s point of view. That sense of mystery keeps viewers eJul 30, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Park Jung-min to star in new Disney+ series 'A Man's Man'Actor Park Jung-min has been cast as the lead for the upcoming Disney+ series "A Man's Man," set to premiere next year, the streaming platform said Tuesday. In the series, Park portrays Han Yoo-hyun, a successful corporate executive who travels back in time to rebuild his career from scratch and correct his past, according to Disney+. Also cast alongside Park are Lee Jung-eun, Kim Dae-myung and Lee Sang-yi. The series is based on the popular work that has already been made into a web fiction and webtoon series. The webtoon series, released in 2020, has racked up 470 million views globally. Kim Hee-won, the actor-producer behind the Disney+ series "Light Shop," will direct the series.Jul 28, 2026By Yonhap
For Nam Joo-hyuk, 'The East Palace' meant shedding rom-com lead image, performing own action scenesThe breezy romantic-comedy leading man was gone. In his place was a ghost slayer with a pale, drawn face and sharply pronounced cheekbones, worn down by his battles with evil spirits and his crossings between the world of the living and the realm of the dead. After a three-year hiatus that included his mandatory military service, Nam Joo-hyuk has returned. In his 20s, Nam was beloved as the face of youth. Now making his comeback in his 30s, he has his sights set on forging a distinct identity of his own. And his comeback project, Netflix’s “The East Palace,” may well come to define the second act of his acting career. Sitting down for an interview at a cafe in Seoul’s Jongno District, Nam said he felt relieved to see the drama finally released. It now ranks as the second-most-watched non-English show globally on Netflix. “The director, crew and my fellow actors all worked incredibly hard on this project, enduring both sweltering heat and bitter cold,” Nam said. “I honestly thought it would take some time for the show to gain attention overseas, but so many people told me thJul 27, 2026By Hankookilbo
Why 'Boys Over Flowers' star Lee Min-ho still beats Hyun Bin, IU overseasLet's start with a quiz: Which Korean actor is the most popular among international fans of the Korean Wave? While recent hitmakers like Lee Jung-jae of the "Squid Game" series (2021–2025), Kim Ji-won of "Queen of Tears" (2024) and Park Bo-gum of "When Life Gives You Tangerines" (2025) might seem like obvious candidates, the survey data points elsewhere. According to the 2026 Overseas Hallyu Survey released by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, global fans selected Lee Min-ho for a 13th consecutive year as their favorite actor. Actress Song Hye-kyo and singer-actress IU followed in second and third place, respectively, in the poll of 27,400 international viewers of Korean content across 30 countries. Respondents answered open-ended questions. The proportion of respondents who named Lee was 7.1 percent, more than double that of Song at 2.6 percent and IU at 2.3 percent. This indicates how strongly global consumers of the Korean wave regard Lee as Korea's leading actor. Lee's presence extended beyond acting. In the ranking of influential Korean wave figures, he placed second oJul 25, 2026By Hankookilbo
InterviewMore brutal, more human: actor Lee Dong-wook on 'A Shop for Killers' Season 2For Lee Dong-wook, returning to Disney+’s “A Shop for Killers” meant more than reviving a once-presumed-dead uncle who runs a clandestine weapons mall for assassins — it meant quietly adding 8 kilograms, guzzling water to “not look older” and rethinking what it means to be a guardian. Lee plays Jeong Jin-man in the Disney+ action thriller, a former team leader for the mercenary company Babylon, now the operator of a clandestine shopping mall, fighting to protect his niece Ji-an and push back against Babylon’s network. The first season drew strong international acclaim, landing on The New York Times’ best international TV show list and among Time magazine’s top four Korean dramas of the year in 2024. Released Wednesday with two episodes and rolling out two more every Wednesday for a total of eight, Season 2 follows Ji-an as the mall’s new CEO join forces with her uncle to launch a full-scale counterattack. “I’m grateful we could come back with Season 2 because Season 1 was loved so much,” Lee said during an interview with The Korea Times in Seoul Thursday. “ItJul 23, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Nam Joo-hyuk to star in new Disney+ crime thriller 'Code'Actor Nam Joo-hyuk has been cast for the upcoming Disney+ original Korean series "Code," set to premiere next year, the streaming platform said Thursday. In the crime thriller, Nam portrays Yoon Tae-joo, a prosecution investigator-turned-lawyer striving to become a partner at a top-notch law firm. The 12-part series unfolds as Yoon comes across a mysterious app called "Code," which makes wishes come true — but at a price. It is based on the Taiwan series that was released in two seasons in 2016 and 2019, respectively. A Japanese remake starring Kentaro Sakaguchi was produced in 2023. "Code" is directed by Yoo Su-min, known for the first and second seasons of the action-packed school drama series "Weak Hero."Jul 23, 2026By Yonhap
'Agent Kim Reactivated' airs K-drama's 1st fully AI sceneOn a snowy night, a motorcycle pursues a black sedan into a mountain tunnel. A wire trap overturns the lead escort vehicle and a mysterious man wearing a mask and a North Korean military uniform approaches the sedan. A gunfight and hand-to-hand combat follow. Overpowering the bodyguard, the man forces the terrified North Korean official into the passenger seat and speeds out of the tunnel. "You’re going to die here with me," the man says, before the sedan crashes through a bridge railing and plunges into the river below. This is the opening scene of the second episode of SBS weekend drama "Agent Kim Reactivated." Presented as a flashback to 2008, the sequence shows the protagonist, Manager Kim (So Ji-sub) — a recruited agent — being sent to a solo covert mission into North Korea to eliminate a hardliner hostile to the South. The sequence packs in nearly every action movie staple, including car chases, a gunfight, hand-to-hand combat and an underwater escape. But So did not film a single frame. The entire three-minute sequence was generated by artificial intelligence (AI), markingJul 23, 2026By Hankookilbo
Season 2 hopes grow for Korea's hottest dramas despite uncertaintyTwo of Korea's biggest scripted hits of the year — SBS television drama "Agent Kim Reactivated" and Netflix series "Teach You a Lesson" — are fueling growing speculation over potential second seasons, even as both platforms say no official plans have been finalized. Interest intensified Tuesday after local reports claimed that Netflix had begun discussions about producing a follow-up season for "Teach You a Lesson." Responding to the report, Netflix told Xportsnews, "Nothing has been decided." The series quickly climbed Netflix's rankings after its release and attracted strong viewership both in Korea and overseas. Based on the popular webtoon of the same name, "Teach You a Lesson" still has numerous original storylines and characters that have yet to appear on screen, leading many fans to expect the story to continue. Netflix has also built a strong track record of expanding successful Korean originals into franchises, including "Squid Game" and "Sweet Home," making "Teach You a Lesson" a natural candidate for another season. Meanwhile, SBS' "Agent Kim Reactivated" has emerged as oneJul 22, 2026By Xportsnews
Disney+ to release 2nd season of 'Made in Korea' in SeptemberThe second season of the popular Disney+ Korean original series "Made in Korea" will premiere in September, the streaming platform said Wednesday. Set in the 1970s, the political thriller portrays Baik Ki-tae (Hyun Bin), a government intelligence operative, who is a drug dealer at night, and prosecutor Jang Keon-young (Jung Woo-sung), who doggedly hunts down Baik. The second installment, set at a time nine years after the first series, follows Baik on a reckless pursuit of even greater ambitions. The first season, released last year, was the most-watched Korean show on Disney+ that year. Other members of the cast who appeared in season 1 join Hyun Bin and Jung in the second season.Jul 22, 2026By Yonhap
'Agent Kim Reactivated' reigns atop Netflix's weekly non-English chart for 3rd weekThe action thriller "Agent Kim Reactivated" extended its chart-topping run on Netflix's non-English chart for the third straight week, the streaming platform said Wednesday. The SBS series, starring So Ji-sub, follows an ordinary father whose secret agent past unfolds as he sets on a mission to find his missing daughter. The webtoon-based series accumulated 8.2 million views during the latest tracking week ending Sunday, according to Netflix. It reached the top 10 in 73 countries and ranked No. 1 in 19 of them, including Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore and Peru. "The East Palace," an action-packed dark fantasy series, debuted at No. 2 on the chart, with 4.9 million views. It was the most-watched show in Korea and Thailand and reached the top 10 in 25 others. Set in a doomed royal palace, the series follows Gu-cheon (Nam Joo-hyuk) and Saeng-gang (Roh Yoon-seo), who work to uncover the source of a curse under orders from the king (Cho Seung-woo), who has lost all but one of his sons to the deadly curse. Other Korean series also performed strongly, with three other shows making the chart. "ThJul 22, 2026By Yonhap
