King The Landis getting an American remake, and it might have a significant impact on the industry and the popularity of K-dramas in the US. K-dramas have risen in global popularity in the past decade, largely because of the success ofNetflix’s original Korean TV showslikeSquid Game,All of Us Are Dead, andSweet Home. While not a Netflix original,King The Landhas been available on the streaming platform since 2023 and centers around Lee Jun-ho’s Gu Won, a chaebol heir, and Im Yoon-ah’s Cheon Sa-rang, a hotel manager who fall in love with each other.
Great K-dramaslikeKing The Landhave found dedicated, passionate fanbases around the world over the last few years. While K-dramas have been popular worldwide for a while, we’ve seen more and more Korean shows frequently join Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English TV Shows. So, it doesn’t come as a surprise thatKing The Landwill be getting a US version.
King The Land Is Getting An American Remake Less Than 2 Years After It Came Out
King The Land Was A Global Success
King The Landwas released on Netflix in 2023 and is getting a US version less than two years after it made its debut on the streaming platform. The romantic K-drama was immensely popular on Netflix,spending 8 weeks on the streamer’s Global Top 10 Non-English TV Shows in 2023. According toVariety, the remake will"reimagine"the workplace rom-com. The US version ofKing The Landwill be produced byCrazy Rich Asian’s Janice Chu, who recently joined the production company Third Culture Content as a producer and co-founder.
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There areseveral successful K-dramason Netflix spanning different genres, so it begs the question of whyKing The Landis the one that’s getting a US remake. However, this isn’t very surprising. The K-drama was a hit in several countries, including Nigeria, Brazil, and South Korea, proving that it appealed to international audiences. Essentially,theUS version can capitalize on the K-drama’s popularity with a reimagined takeon it. So far, there are no details about the exact route the new version ofKing The Landwill take or how true it will stay to the original K-drama.
King The Land’s US Show Could Mean A New Strategy For American K-Drama Remakes
More K-Dramas Might Be Getting American Remakes
A popular medical K-drama,The Good Doctor, has an American remake of the same name that premiered in 2017 and has been a successful show ever since. Seeing asthe Korean version ofThe Good Doctorwas released in 2013, it took four years for the US to remake the show. However, the news of an American version ofKing The Landcame shortly after it made its debut. This essentially means thatUS K-drama remakes might start happening faster ifKing The Landworks.
Kim Seon-young
Gu Hwa-ran
If theKing The LandUS remake is successful, it could reinforce the idea that more popular K-dramas should get an American version shortly after they are released, which could change the industry in a lot of ways. Given thatstudios are always looking for the next big thing, it wouldn’t be surprising that in the future, audiences will get to see their favorite K-dramas being remade in the US. However, this strategy might not always work because K-dramas have a certain magic that is difficult to replicate.
The US Version Of King The Land Will Have To Find A Way To Be More Interesting Than The Original K-Drama
Remakes are a risky venture because they are taking a story that is already known and loved by audiences and have to find a way to keep it interesting. This is especially difficult because fans of the show had a reason they loved it in the first place, whether it might be the actors or the setting. It is worth noting thatsome Korean remakes of American TV shows have been successfulbut that doesn’t mean that the same thing will be true for the US version ofKing The Land.
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What’s even more puzzling about the announcement of theKing The Landremake is that it was never No. 1 in the US despite being a global phenomenon. However, the one advantage the American version ofKing The Landmight have is that there is information about the show’s shortcomings.King The Landreceived divisive reviews with a 71% critic Rotten Tomatoes score and 23% from audienceswho had issues with the K-drama’s predictable plot.
The American remake can take strides to correct the complaints audiences had about the original K-drama. GivenKing The Land’s success, the US version of the show has to find a balance between including everything fans loved about the original series, like the chemistry between its lead characters, and adding a fresh spin on the story. Since it’s a remake, it can’t divert too far from the original series, otherwise, it might as well be a new series.
King the Land
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King the Land: Amid a tense inheritance battle, a charming heir faces off against his hardworking employee, known for her irresistible smile, which he finds unbearable. This series navigates the complexities of personal dynamics and family loyalty in the high-stakes world of corporate succession.
