'Squid Game' star Lee Jung-jae’s rom-com pairing with 17-year age gap courts controversy

“Squid Game” star Lee Jung-jae’s upcoming tvN rom-com “Nice to Not Meet You,” in which he stars opposite “The Glory” actress Lim Ji-yeon, is sparking debate in Korea over the actors' 17-year age gap, though critics caution it’s too soon to judge. "Nice to Not Meet You,” a 16-part series slated to premiere Nov. 3 on cable channel tvN, pairs Lee, an A-list celebrity in the series, with Lim, who plays the entertainment reporter Wi Jung-shin. The two characters find themselves romantically entangled

Oct. 20, 2025

W Korea apologizes after breast cancer charity event draws backlash as ‘celebrity party’

Charity galas are meant to blend glamour with goodwill. But when the spotlight shifts too much toward spectacle and the funds raised fall short, public criticism often follows. That is what happened to W Korea. On Sunday, the magazine issued a public apology after its annual breast cancer awareness campaign, Love Your W, was criticized for feeling more like a celebrity party than a charity event, especially given the modest amount it raised. The company apologized four days after Wednesday's eve

Oct. 20, 2025

Seoul becomes capital of webtoons, heart of K-content this week

Jamsil-gu in southeastern Seoul has transformed into a playground for webtoon lovers this week. The 2025 World Webtoon Festival kicked off Sunday across Lotte Town, a vast complex connecting Lotte World, Lotte World Tower, Lotte World Mall and Lotte Hotel World. The event brings together creators, platforms and fans from around the world for a four-day celebration of imagination, innovation and the ever-expanding influence of webtoons. The festival, cohosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports an

Oct. 19, 2025

Largest collection of stone rubbings donated to National Museum of Korea

More than a thousand stone rubbings — created and collected over 40 years by the Ven. Heungseon, a master of the art of stone rubbing, or takbon in Korean — have found a new home at the National Museum of Korea. The donation is Korea's largest in scale, showing the evolution of Korea’s epigraphic culture spanning from the Three Kingdoms (57 BC-AD 668) to Joseon era (1392-1910), according to NMK. "By overcoming the inaccuracies and fragmentary nature of earlier rubbings, he systemically surveyed

Oct. 19, 2025

Reviving 'Seopyeonje': Art of pansori, obsession and father’s shocking choice

A sense of doom fills the air. On a dim, blue-tinged night, the stage turns slowly, almost dizzyingly. A father paces in agitation before pulling a small vial from his sleeve and, with grim resolve, sprinkles its content — cheongangsu, a caustic liquid — into his daughter’s eyes. The girl cries out to her father in pain. The harrowing scene is from “Seopyeonje; The Original,” the latest production at the National Jeongdong Theater of Korea, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year with a

Oct. 17, 2025

National Museum of Korea tops 5m visitors for the first time in 80 years

Worldwide, only five museums attract over 5 million visitors a year. Now, South Korea’s National Museum of Korea joins the ranks of the Louvre in Paris, the Vatican Museums, the British Museum, and New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, having welcomed 5,016,382 visitors as of Wednesday. The Seoul-based museum announced Friday that its annual visitor count has surpassed 5 million for the first time since its founding 80 years ago. Between Jan. 1 and Wednesday, the museum recorded a 69.7 percent

Oct. 17, 2025

Sounds of jazz to warm cool autumn

The 22nd edition of the Jarasum Jazz Festival, South Korea's largest annual jazz festival that started in 2004, is being held Friday to Sunday on Jara Island and in the surrounding town in Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province. This year, a total of 41 acts from 17 countries are performing at the event. The lineup includes Bill Frisell Trio, Ibrahim Maalouf, Mathias Eick Quintet, Wolfgang Muthspiel Trio and Hungarian Focus artists Dresch Quartet, to name a few. The festival will also feature performan

Oct. 17, 2025

Baek Se-hee, author of 'I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki,' dies at 35

Baek Se-hee, the author of the internationally bestselling memoir "I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki," has died at the age of 35. According to the Korea Organ Donation Agency, Baek saved five lives through organ donation. The agency said on Thursday that she donated her heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. Further details surrounding her death have not been disclosed. Baek’s younger sister said in a press release via KODA, “(Baek) wanted to write, to share her heart with others through her

Oct. 17, 2025

Ro Woon breaks the mold in Disney+ hit 'The Murky Stream'

Introduced alongside Netflix Korea’s tentpole “Genie, Make a Wish” — starring power duo Bae Suzy and Kim Woo-bin — “The Murky Stream” arrived amid fierce competition during the Chuseok holidays, when streamers typically unleash their most high-profile titles. The Disney+ historical drama anchored by Ro Woon (“The King’s Affection”) and Shin Ye-eun (“Jeongnyeon: The Star is Born”) surprised many, becoming an unexpected breakout despite the marquee stars of its Netflix rival. The series held the t

Oct. 16, 2025

Korea National Opera's latest: Korean story with 9 female singers, regional dialect

Set in April 1950, three months before the outbreak of the Korean War that would stretch to 1953, “Hwajeonga” unfolds in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province. To mark her 60th birthday, Madame Kim proposes a spring flower picnic rather than a traditional banquet. Nine women share their stories, singing and comforting one another amid the silence left by the men lost to the tides of history. Written by the renowned Bai Sam-shik, the National Theater Company of Korea premiered the play in 2020 to cri

Oct. 16, 2025

Tving goes global as CJ ENM, Warner Bros. Discovery ink partnership

Warner Bros. Discovery and CJ ENM announced Thursday an agreement on a strategic content production and distribution partnership designed to deepen the global reach of Korean dramas. At the heart of the deal is Tving, the CJ ENM-affiliated streaming platform, launching a branded hub on HBO Max. HBO Max is Warner Bros. Discovery’s US-based subscription service. The dedicated Tving hub, set to roll out in early 2026, will be available in 17 Asia-Pacific markets, including Southeast Asia, Taiwan an

Oct. 16, 2025

[Exclusive] MBC considers making more staff permanent workers following weathercaster reform

Public broadcaster MBC, one of South Korea’s leading TV networks, said it is reviewing converting non-regular staff in other departments into full-time employees, following its recent decision to make all weathercaster positions permanent starting 2026. An MBC insider, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said the company is positively reviewing the conversions, but the scope of any broader conversion will hinge on the outcome of labor inspections and other legal

Oct. 16, 2025

G-Dragon, Lee Byung-hun, Kim Hae-sook among six honored with Order of Cultural Merit

Six leading figures in Korean entertainment — actors Kim Hae-sook, Jung Dong-hwan and Lee Byung-hun; voice actor Bae Han-seong; late comedian Jeon Yoo-sung; and K-pop icon G-Dragon — have been selected to receive the Order of Cultural Merit, the nation’s highest honor for contributions to popular culture and the arts. The Korea Popular Culture and Arts Awards, organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is the most prestigious government ceremony recognizing achievements in drama,

Oct. 15, 2025

Seoul hails trend-setting status as Design Week kicks off at DDP

The 12th edition of Seoul Design Week kicked off Wednesday at the iconic Dongdaemun Design Plaza, joined by more than 100 designers and designer brands. Held under the theme “Design, Designer, Design Life,” this year's event collaborated with Musinsa, South Korea’s leading online fashion retailer, to recruit and select the participating designer brands as well as market the fair. Seoul Design Week's main event, DDP Design Fair, presents a theme pavilion featuring ordinary objects that reflect th

Oct. 15, 2025

MBC formally apologizes for death of former weathercaster Oh Yoanna

A year and one month after former Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation weathercaster Oh Yoanna’s suicide amid alleged workplace bullying, MBC has issued a formal apology and promised reforms. This follows a controversial Ministry of Employment and Labor ruling that, while acknowledging harassment, said the case did not fall under legal workplace protections since Oh was a freelancer. On Wednesday, MBC hosted a press conference at its Sang-am headquarters, attended by Oh’s mother Jang Yeon-mi, MBC Pre

Oct. 15, 2025