When The Legend of the Kitchen Soldier was screened at Lille’s Series Mania in March of this year, Sebastian Kim was not only on screen, but also in the audience. The series was considered a gamble within the Korean media giant CJ ENM.
“We saw this as a bold and somewhat risky project, as it incorporates comedic elements that some might consider too Korean or too graphic,” said Kim, head of CJ ENM’s content division. What happened in Lille changed his mind. “Compelling comedy and authentic storytelling can transcend cultural and linguistic boundaries.”
That belief was then backed up by numbers. The 12-episode series, which premiered on May 11, interweaves comedy, food, fantasy, and military life, centering on a soldier who discovers a virtual quest screen that leads him to become an army cook.It reached number two overall on Disney+ Japan and was ranked among the top three Korean drama titles on HBO Max in 17 countries and regions, performing particularly well in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Rakuten Viki placed it in the top 5 in the Americas, Europe, Oceania, and MENA, and #2 on streamer IVI in Russia and the CIS. The London screening co-hosted with the British Korean Cultural Center on May 28th attracted more than four times the audience that CJ ENM had expected.
Alongside this, “Filing for Love,” a romantic comedy about an internal auditor investigating a workplace scandal who falls in love with the colleague he was supposed to expose, also had its own notable results. It ranked #1 in all regions and regions on Rakuten Viki, #1 drama and #2 overall on Japan’s U-NEXT, and #1 overall on Mongolian streamer Inche TV.
The two titles are almost complete opposites in design. One was a solid commercial bet. Another is a creative leap. “Instead of proving that only a certain type of Korean story can be successful globally,” Kim says. The two prove that now is the time to expand the scope of Korean dramas. Romantic comedies will continue to be a reliable foundation that retains its appeal across generations and borders. “It’s essential to balance familiar favorites with bold innovation.”
This balance is complicated by changes in the way audiences consume content, which Kim identifies as his most pressing concern. “People have now come to expect an emotional hit within seconds,” he says. “This is a big problem for 16-episode Korean dramas, which take a long time to produce. We’re not just addressing a marketing challenge; we feel the format itself is misaligned with the way today’s audiences consume content.” Accelerating consumption cycles are also shortening the period in which titles can generate revenue, with mid-tier content being hit the hardest.
“The question is not, ‘How do we make the drama shorter?'” he says. “It’s, ‘What moment in this story makes someone want to watch all 16 episodes?'” Distributors who can successfully answer that question have a real advantage. ” In the long term, he expects the format to be built to work for both short and long form from the beginning, but he argues that is a structural opportunity rather than a threat to distribution.
On the question of how Korean content reaches different markets, Kim pinpoints the limitations of the unified theory. Shaped by geographic proximity and sustained cultural exchange, Japan tends to respond to familiar Korean talent in ways that bear little resemblance to the behavior of audiences in Europe, the Americas, and the Middle East. Platform demographics further complicate the situation. “Some platforms have a primarily Gen Z audience, while others attract viewers in their 40s and 50s,” he says. “Understanding these audience dynamics is essential when assessing the potential of a title in each market.”
Regarding CJ ENM’s next phase of expansion, Kim cited MENA and India as the company’s immediate strategic priorities, with investments in dubbing being central to the drive. Both regions have strong local entertainment traditions, and audiences are accustomed to viewing content in their native language. The company co-produces “Infinite Loop” and “Synchro Game” with TBS, and “Mary Berry Love,” a cross-cultural romantic comedy designed for Japanese and international audiences, with Nippon Television.
“The next wave is for Korean storytelling to become part of the way other cultures tell their own stories through co-production, format adaptation, and creative partnerships across the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and other regions. It’s increasingly not just made in Korea, but made with Korea,” he says.
In addition to that geographic shift, he sees the industry’s center of gravity shifting from individual titles to IP ecosystems, seeds of worlds that can grow through shows, artists, games, live experiences, and fan communities that are starting points rather than finished products. “Companies that build their world around content will survive,” he says.
CJ ENM produces and distributes television, film, music and live entertainment content and operates franchise properties such as “I Can See Your Voice” and live event brands KCON and MAMA.
