Netflix confirms live-action ‘Solo Leveling' with Byeon Woo-seok as Sung Jinwoo
The series, based on the massively popular web novel and webtoon, follows the story of Sung Jinwoo, a low-ranked Hunter who gains extraordinary powers after a near-death experience.
Solo Leveling, originally written by Chugong in 2016 and illustrated by Dubu for Redice Studio, has become one of the most successful webtoons ever, racking up over 14.3 billion cumulative views globally on KakaoPage. It remains the No. 1 title on the platform for both web novel and webtoon formats.
Byeon Woo-seok, best known for his breakout roles in 20th Century Girl and Lovely Runner, will take on the role of Jinwoo, an E-rank Hunter who becomes humanity's greatest weapon against monstrous forces unleashed from supernatural Gates.
The Netflix adaptation will be co-directed by Lee Hae-jun and Kim Byung-seo, the duo behind acclaimed films like Ashfall and Castaway on the Moon. Production is a collaboration between Netflix, Kakao Entertainment, and Sanai Pictures.
The Solo Leveling franchise recently expanded into anime, with its first season sweeping the 2025 Crunchyroll Anime Awards, winning nine categories including Anime of the Year and Best Action. In a separate announcement, global music star J Balvin was revealed to be voicing a character in the upcoming Solo Leveling Season 2 — Arise From the Shadow.
With the webtoon's massive fanbase and Netflix's international reach, the Solo Leveling live-action adaptation is expected to become a major addition to K-drama and fantasy action programming worldwide.
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