The 12 Most Intriguing Korean Dramas of 2024

From revenge dramas to classic romances, 2024 promises to be another fruitful year for Korean content. At the top of the list are the anticipated returns of Squid Game and All of Us Are Dead, along with upcoming K-dramas like the fantastical Everything Will Come True, fake marriage drama The Trunk, and space romance Ask the Stars. And there are plenty more worth getting excited over, such as the psychological thriller The Bequeathed, the 1980s comedy Aema, the action thriller Badland Hunters, and the revenge mystery Wonderful World.

It’s nearly impossible to highlight all the promising new Korean shows seemingly dropping every week, primarily on Netflix (as part of its four-year $2.5 billion investment in K-content), with other platforms like Hulu, Disney+, Paramount+, Prime Video, and Viki, the specialty streamer dedicated to Asian titles, doling out their own programming as well. But the year is already off to a fast start with the launches of Gyeongseong Creature’s second half and the historical drama Love Song for Illusion.

With an overwhelming number of Korean shows coming out this year, we put together a list of the ones that promise to be captivating and unconventional. Here are 12 Korean shows worth watching in 2024.

Marry My Husband (Prime Video)

Premiered January 1, new episodes every Monday and Tuesday

Betrayal and second chances are popular themes explored in K-dramas, and it’s no different with Marry My Husband, which complicates the story a tiny bit with another familiar trope: time-travel. The series follows Kang Ji-won (Park Min-young), who is living an unspectacular life — her marriage is terrible, her in-laws are unsupportive, and her job isn’t fulfilling. After witnessing her husband’s affair with her best friend, Ji-won is murdered but gets a chance to redo her life when she goes back in time 10 years.

A Shop for Killers (Hulu)

Premiered January 17

Adapted from a novel, action-mystery drama A Shop for Killers is about as twisty as it gets. Kingdom star Kim Hye-jun plays college student Jung Ji-an, who lost her parents at a young age and is raised by her uncle (Lee Dong-wook), who later mysteriously dies. After Ji-an inherits the top-secret, suspicious shopping mall he once ran, she’s targeted by dangerous assassins who are desperate to get their hands on it. There’s a lot of promising layers to A Shop for Killers, which adds to the intrigue.

Doctor Slump (Netflix)

Premieres January 27

The enemies-to-lovers premise takes center stage in the Korean romance Doctor Slump, which follows two high school foes, Park Shin-hye’s Nam Ha-neul and Park Hyung-sik’s Yeo Jeong-woo, who can’t stand the sight of each other. They meet again years later, this time as burnt-out doctors who reunite when they’re both at their lowest points. A blending of the romantic comedy and medical drama genres, Doctor Slump holds promise of being a whimsical tale of love and new beginnings.

A Killer Paradox (Netflix)

Premieres February 9

It’s immoral to kill, but is it less wrong if it’s a person who did bad things? Based on the webtoon of the same name, this thriller stars Parasite’s Choi Woo-shik as Lee Tang, an ordinary university student who discovers he has the ability to identify evildoers after he accidentally murders a serial killer. The police, led by Detective Jang Nan-gam (Son Suk-ku), are now hot on his trail as they try to stop his vigilante ways. A Killer Paradox has a morally complex premise that’s strengthened by Woo-shik’s casting; his natural acting style is sure to add an endearing comic flair to the series.

Queen of Tears (Netflix)

Premieres March 2024

A modern twist on the classic prince and princess fairytale, Queen of Tears aims to subvert those narrative expectations. The romantic drama, written by Crash Landing on You’s Park Ji-eun, revolves around the relationship between chaebol heiress Hong Hae-in (Kim Ji-won) and lawyer Baek Hyun-woo (Kim Soo-hyun), who are faced with a crisis three years into their marriage and forced to navigate uncharted territory as they try to rekindle their romance. Korean dramas don’t often begin a story midway through a couple’s relationship as Queen of Tears does here, and for that it’s worth taking a look, especially with two popular Korean actors leading it.

Everything Will Come True (Netflix)

Premiere date TBD

If you’re looking for a love story between a human and a non-human, Everything Will Come True should be at the top of your list. Bae Suzy, who recently starred in Doona!, plays Ga-young, an ordinary, emotion-allergic woman who frees a genie (Kim Woo-bin) and is granted three wishes. However, the genie is the polar opposite to Ga-young and feels everything intensely and has a personality of his own. The upcoming series marks the anticipated reunion between the two actors, who previously worked together in 2016’s romantic melodrama, Uncontrollably Fond.

Mr. Plankton (Netflix)

Premiere date TBD

The mundanity and loneliness of life takes a toll on the main character in the upcoming series, Mr. Plankton. The drama follows Hae-jo (Woo Do-wan), who dreams of a more colorful and interesting existence than the gloomy one he currently has, and Jae-mi (Lee Yoo-mi), who becomes his source of infinite love. Lee Yoo-mi’s career has risen dramatically since her historic Emmy win for Squid Game, when she became the first Korean actress to win for guest drama acting, starring in high-profile projects like All of Us Are Dead and Strong Girl Nam-soon.

The Trunk (Netflix)

Premiere date TBD

Contract marriages and fake relationships are common go-to plot devices in K-dramas, but The Trunk promises to elevate the trope by adding a conspiracy to it. Led by Seo Hyun-jin and Gong Yoo, the upcoming series follows a seasoned contract marriage worker, In-ji, who is hired to be a fake wife to a lonely music producer, Jung-won. His ex-wife is the one who hired the company, adding to the complex dynamics. As In-ji and Jung-won enter into their one-year marriage contract, a mysterious trunk surfaces and leads them on a mission that may uncover secrets behind the company.

You Have Done Well (Netflix)

Premiere date TBD

Popular Korean singer IU and actor Park Bo-gum lead i>You Have Done Well, which follows the lives of Ae-soon and Gwan-sik, who were born in Jeju Island in the 1950s. Not much is known about the plot itself, but it likely is a year-long snapshot of two characters at the peak of their youthful love story. Queenmaker star Moon So-ri and 20th Century Girl’s Park Hae-joon play older versions of the characters. The project also marks the first time in more than five years that IU, whose acting credits include Hotel Del Luna, My Mister, and Dream, has starred in a K-drama.

Ask the Stars (TBA)

Premiere date TBD

Love in space? It’s rare to find a Korean space romance, so Ask the Stars — which is toplined by Pachinko and Boys Over Flowers’ Lee Min-ho as a space tourist and Gong Hyo-jin as an astronaut — immediately piqued our interest. The story is pretty simple: They meet on a space station and it’s, for all intents and purposes, love at first sight. At the moment, it doesn’t appear to have a U.S. streaming home but with the cast involved, it wouldn’t be surprising if it gets snapped up soon.

Squid Game Season 2 (Netflix)

Premieres late 2024

The return of Netfllix’s most successful K-drama is easily one of the most anticipated of the year. With Emmy winner Lee Jung-jae back as Gi-hun for Season 2 of Squid Game, along with familiar faces Wi Ha-joon as guard Jun-ho, Lee Byung-hun as the Front Man, and Gong Yoo as the Salesman, the global phenomenon is bound to look vastly different when it does come back due to the addition of at least a dozen new cast members. Filming began last summer after Netflix shared images from the first cast table read. Whatever surprises Squid Game mastermind Hwang Dong-hyuk has up his sleeve will surely be worth the wait.

All of Us Are Dead Season 2 (Netflix)

Premieres late 2024

One of the best Korean shows of 2022, All of Us Are Dead will see the students of Hyosan High outrun more zombies in Season 2. The series was massively popular upon its debut and follows a group of students who must figure out how to survive a zombie outbreak while stuck in the confines of their high school. While not everyone made it out alive and the school was destroyed by the end of Season 1, the show’s cliffhangers and unanswered questions leave plenty of creative room for new stories to unfold. One of the biggest mysteries? The possible resurrection of Cheong-san (played by Yoon Chan-young), who was presumed dead.

Philiana Ng is a Los Angeles-based writer covering TV, celebrity, culture and more. Her work has appeared in The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, Entertainment Tonight, TV Guide, Yahoo Entertainment, and The Daily Beast, among others.