Paramount+ expands Korean originals slate
April 20, 2023
Paramount+ has announced the expansion of its global Korean originals slate, revealing two new series A Bloody Lucky Day and Queen Woo will launch exclusively on the service in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, Latin America, Brazil, Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Both series will be available on TVING in South Korea and mark the latest projects developed by Paramount+ and TVING, out of Paramount’s global partnership with the Korean entertainment powerhouse, CJ ENM.
The news comes amidst the growing success of the service’s global Korean originals, as upcoming Paramount+ original series Bargain was crowned ‘Best Screenplay’ at last night’s Canneseries Awards Ceremony in France. Paramount+ also announced that recently launched Korean drama series Yonder ranks as the most watched international series in the US so far this year. Yonder launched globally on April 11th on the service, and Paramount+ has now announced the expansion of its global Korean originals slate will premiere on Paramount+ this summer.
“These achievements highlight the exceptional value and storytelling that our partnership with CJ ENM brings to our platform worldwide,” says Marco Nobili, EVP and General Manager, Paramount+ International. “Quality Korean content is a key piece of Paramount+’s global offering, and we’re expanding our roster of originals to continue to provide entertainment with captivating narratives and performances that transcends borders.”
“We are incredibly proud of our Korean content that is finally taking the global stage, engaging viewers and fans on Paramount+ and beyond,” said Catherine Park, Senior Vice President, Head of Streaming & Regional Lead Asia, Paramount. “The addition of A Bloody Lucky Day and Queen Woo strengthens our global content offering, and we look forward to bringing more original Korean content to our viewers worldwide.”
Hye-jung Hwang, Chief Content Officer at TVING said, “Recently, colorful TVING original series in different genres such as fantasy action, thriller and historical drama have entered the global awards ceremony competition both domestically and abroad. We will continue to expand the global competitiveness of K-content with well-made original series that feature a large scale and a unique worldview.”
A Bloody Lucky Day is a thriller action series following an ordinary taxi driver Taek, who gets entangled with a customer that turns out to be a serial killer. Directed by Pil Gam-Sung and written by Kim Min-sung and Song Hanna, the series is produced by CJ ENM’s production house Studio Dragon, The Great Show and Studio N, and stars Lee Sung-min as Oh Taek, the taxi driver, Yoo Yeon-seok as Geum Hyuk-soo, the psychopathic killer, and Lee Jung-eun as Hwang Soon-gyu, the relentless chaser.
Queen Woo is a period drama series directed by Jung Se-kyo and written by Lee Byoung-hak. Upon the death of King Ko Nam Moo, Korea’s Goguryeo region’s ninth King, a fierce battle between all the tribes owned by the late King’s brothers begins. In efforts to inherit the throne, a chase to marry one of the King’s brothers ensues, and the series follows the journey of Queen Woo Hee, the first woman in history to become queen twice. TVING announced that Jun Jong-seo will play Queen Woo, and additional cast members will be announced at a later date.
Paramount+ officially marked its entry to Asia last year with the launch of its streaming service in South Korea on the K-content platform, TVING, launched by CJ ENM. This was a part of a strategic global partnership between Paramount Global and CJ ENM that includes content licensing and distribution across Paramount+ and TVING, as well as the development of Korean original series. A Bloody Lucky Day and Queen Woo will be licensed by Paramount Global Content Distribution outside of Korea, Japan and Taiwan.