'Reborn Rich' confirmed for season 2
'Squid Game' star Lee Jung-jae's Artist Company, Artist Studio to create the new season
"Reborn Rich," the series that swept awards and achieved global popularity for its adrenaline-filled narrative of a man seeking revenge after being reborn into the chaebol dynasty that wronged him, is officially returning for a second season.
Season 2 is poised to expand its scope with a storyline designed for a global audience.
While specific plot details remain under wraps, the upcoming season will stretch beyond the world of Koran conglomerates, introducing new characters and an expanded universe.
It remains unconfirmed whether Song Joong-ki, who headlined the first season, will return to the series.
Production duties for the sophomore season will be jointly handled by Artist Company and Artist Studio. Artist Company will take the lead on overall planning and creative development, while Artist Studio will oversee physical production. Both entities operate under the Artist Group umbrella — home to "Squid Game" star Lee Jung-jae and actor Jung Woo-sung, who serve as key shareholders.
Originally airing on JTBC in 2022, the first season of "Reborn Rich," adapted from a web novel of the same name, became a cultural phenomenon, peaking at a 26.9 percent viewership rating. In the series, Song delivered a dual performance as Yoon Hyun-woo, a loyal secretary managing corporate risk for a powerful family — who is later reincarnated as Jin Do-jun, the youngest heir determined to upend the dynasty from within.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
11 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Legendary webtoon comes to life
Netflix Korea's 'Mercy for None' brings popular webtoon to Netflix, with So Ji-sub as main lead Two icons converge in Netflix Korea's latest crime noir series as one of the country's most widely beloved webtoons gets the live-action treatment with fan-favorite actor So Ji-sub stepping into the lead role. Titled 'Mercy for None,' the series follows Ki-joon (So Ji-sub), a former gangster who resurfaces after an 11-year disappearance to avenge his brother's death. Adapted from the wildly popular Naver Webtoon of the same name, which ran from 2020 to 2021, the series builds on the source material's reputation as one of Korea's most anticipated noir-action titles this year. So's casting as Ki-joon was a dream come true for longtime fans of the original comic, who had long envisioned him as the perfect fit for the ruthless fighter, according to the series' director. 'So Ji-sub was the casting that fans of the original webtoon wanted most for the live-action adaptation. I was really glad that he agreed to take the role,' said director Choi Seong-eun at a press conference held Thursday in Jung-gu, Seoul. 'Even I wasn't sure at first what kind of image or expression that actor would bring to the character Ki-joon. But on the first day I met him, I felt that he would be able to convey Ki-joon's emotions well. I was given the opportunity to create freely in a rich environment with truly great ingredients.' Known for his performances in past hit dramas such as "I'm Sorry, I Love You" (2004) and "Master's Sun" (2013), So returns to the action genre for the first time in over a decade, following his role in the 2012 feature "A Company Man." 'Mercy for None' also marks his debut in an streaming original series. Discussing the action-driven narrative, So explained his approach to the role's physicality. 'The director told us not to include unnecessary action. He said it would be better not to throw in action just for the sake of it during transitional scenes. When it comes to revenge, are we going to subdue these people or punish them? There's a difference, and we tried to make that distinction,' he said. 'For each character, I thought of the action as a form of dialogue spoken through the body. The director said it would be great if the characters' energy and emotional flow could be felt when they fight. He also said the action should have a narrative arc —beginning, development, twist and conclusion. He wanted the intensity of the action to build gradually and reach a climax. We talked about a lot of things beyond that too, and fortunately, I think all of that was well reflected in the final piece.' Director Choi emphasized that the emotional stakes were central to staging the combat. 'For the action scenes as well, Ki-joon's emotions were the most important. If the emotions weren't convincing, it could come across as just a physical clash. I directed it so that the collision of emotions would manifest as action.' 'Mercy for None' premiered Friday on Netflix.
Korea Herald
a day ago
- Korea Herald
MBC logs highest viewership on election night
Joint exit polls by broadcasters miss mark, with final tally showing tighter race South Korea's three major broadcast networks, KBS, MBC and SBS, aired marathon coverage of Tuesday's presidential election running some eight hours, with MBC emerging as the clear ratings leader. According to Nielsen Korea, MBC's 'Election 2025' drew the highest nationwide household viewership across all parts of its six-segment broadcast. Its ratings climbed steadily, with Part 1 drawing 4.3 percent, peaking at 14.5 percent in Part 3, and concluding at 5.4 percent in Part 6. MBC was the only network among the three to record double-digit ratings. KBS' election coverage, titled 'Vote That Changes My Life" (translated), saw more modest numbers, starting at 2.4 percent and reaching a high of 5.2 percent in Part 2 before tapering off to 2.0 percent. The SBS special, '2025 People's Vote" (translated), posted still lower figures, opening at 1.4 percent and peaking at 3.7 percent in Parts 3 and 4, before ending at 1.2 percent. MBC's ratings dominance follows a strong performance during April's general election, when it led all Korean broadcasters with a viewership high of 11.7 percent. With election night coverage stretching eight to nine hours, each broadcaster introduced distinct features to retain viewer interest. MBC drew attention for a cinematic countdown video that wove together major moments in Korean history. One segment linked a 1946 speech by independence leader Kim Gu with BTS frontman RM's 2018 address to the United Nations -- an editing choice that garnered considerable online engagement for blending historical gravitas with contemporary cultural relevance. SBS leaned into playful visual effects, incorporating pop culture parodies, including references to "Squid Game" and the viral Pikki Pikki cheerleading dance, both of which gained traction on social media. Meanwhile, the accuracy of exit polls conducted jointly by KBS, MBC and SBS was called into question due to the significant difference between the exit polls and the final vote tally. The poll surveyed 80,146 voters at 325 polling stations nationwide on the day of the election, between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. It carried a margin of error of plus or minus 0.8 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. The poll projected a decisive win for Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung with 51.7 percent of the vote, compared to 39.3 percent for Kim Moon-soo of the People Power Party -- a projected gap of 12.4 percentage points. However, the final tally showed a narrower margin: Lee received 49.42 percent of the votes, while Kim garnered 41.15 percent, which amounted to an actual gap of 8.27 percentage points. The low accuracy of the exit polls is largely interpreted as stemming from high turnout during early voting, which took place May 29 and 30 and saw a participation rate of 34.74 percent. Since exit polling is conducted only on Election Day, early voters' preferences may have been harder to capture. To account for potential discrepancies stemming from the early voting turnout, an additional 11,500 people were surveyed by phone and correction factors were applied to the data. Despite these efforts, the broadcasters ultimately failed to deliver an accurate prediction. Some politicians attributed the miscalculation to the influence of so-called 'shy conservatives.' During a radio broadcast on Wednesday, Woo Sang-ho, co-chair of the Democratic Party of Korea's election campaign committee, remarked, 'It has been clearly confirmed that shy conservatives made up about 5 to 5.5 percent,' noting that 'voters in this group, who had been hesitant to cast their ballots, ultimately turned out in full force.' In the 2022 presidential election, exit poll results showed Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung with 47.8 percent and People Power Party candidate Yoon Suk-yeol with 48.4 percent. The actual vote count closely aligned, with Lee receiving 47.8 percent and Yoon 48.5 percent. The early voting turnout during the 2022 presidential election reached 36.93 percent nationwide. The additional phone surveys were conducted to improve accuracy and were credited with producing exit poll estimates that were nearly spot-on.
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Korea Herald
Broadcasters pull out all stops in Election Day coverage
Broadcasters vie for viewership, with high-profile panels, dynamic visuals, proprietary voting prediction South Korea's major broadcasters went all-out for their live coverage of the June 3 presidential election, delivering eight-hours of marathon programming, each with a distinct editorial style. National broadcaster KBS opted for a documentarylike, serious tone, while SBS took a more energetic approach, incorporating upbeat music such as 10cm's 'To Reach You' and prominently featuring its teddy bear mascot, Toopyoro. Meanwhile, MBC stuck to a relatively traditional, news-driven format, delivering the results with a straightforward, businesslike tone. After leading the viewership rating during April's general election, MBC returned this year with an impressive setup for "Election 2025." The network unveiled its six-panel display, the largest LED screen ever used in Korean election broadcasting for displaying election results. Ceiling-mounted wire cameras provided sweeping shots of the studio for dynamic footage. The 'Debate M' segment featured a lineup of prominent figures including author Yoo Si-min, former Korea Economic Daily editor-in-chief Chung Kyoo-jae, Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Park Joo-min and People Power Party Rep. Cho Kyung-tae. SBS has stood out in past elections with its eye-popping graphics that heavily reference popular culture. This year, it offered a 'Squid Game'-inspired segment in its election coverage program, "2025 People's Vote." SBS also debuted Korea's first extended reality live talk show as part of its election coverage. Titled 'Sseoltongryeong,' the segment turned the studio into a fully rendered 3D environment, transporting talk show guests to digitally recreated locations such as the National Assembly and the presidential office. Guests on the talk show included younger voices such as YouTuber Oh Chang-seok, host of YouTube political satire-comedy channel "President Namcheon-dong"; Park Sung-min, a former youth secretary at the Blue House; and Park Min-young, a People Power Party spokesperson. KBS turned to generative AI for its coverage titled "Vote That Changes My Life." Images depicting cities that were hotbeds of democratization movements and industrial landmarks served as a backdrop to the broadcast announcing the election results, with the network also operating from a dedicated studio for panel talks at the 'K-Cube,' located in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. KBS' analysis segment assembled a diverse panel of politicians and political pundits including Democratic Party members Lee So-young and Kim Sang-wook, the People Power Party's Kim Jae-seop, the New Reform Party's Chun Ha-ram and former JoongAng Ilbo editorial writer Kim Jin. The broadcasters also highlighted their proprietary vote prediction systems. MBC utilized its own system that integrated exit polls, historical data and live vote counts to forecast results, while SBS deployed 'Yoo-Hwak-Dang,' combining early exit polling with ongoing vote updates to calculate winning probabilities. Meanwhile, KBS used 'Decision K+,' a system that tracked candidate performance in real-time and categorized their chances of victory as 'likely,' 'certain' or 'elected.'
