Netflix is currently facing the challenge of overcoming the continued slump of its seasonal dramas. Popular original series like ‘Sweet Home’, ‘Gyeongseong Creature’, and ‘D.P.’ have underperformed in their sequels. In particular, despite the ambitious return of ‘Hellbound 2’, responses have been lukewarm. This has led to criticism that there is a lack of consideration for quality, with too much focus on producing second seasons.
Seasonal dramas are a familiar system in Hollywood and the global market, and in Korea, they have become common on terrestrial and cable channels, riding the popularity of OTT dramas. However, recent sequels of seasonal dramas have failed to live up to the reputation of their predecessors, raising questions about the platforms themselves. This situation is coupled with criticism that the advantages of utilizing IP (intellectual property) and securing a fixed audience are not being fully leveraged.
Netflix, in particular, has been unable to overcome the slump of its seasonal dramas since last year, with 2023 releases like ‘D.P. 2’, ‘Sweet Home 2 & 3’, ‘Gyeongseong Creature 2’, ‘Hellbound 2’, and the movie ‘Believer 2’ all failing to surpass the success of their predecessors. As a result, the growth of K-Content has also stalled. Since ‘Squid Game’ and ‘The Glory’, no new content has emerged as a significant ‘kick’.
In a recent interview, director Yeon SangHo commented on the current production environment for Korean seasonal dramas, stating that the industry is “in a transitional phase of system formation” and emphasized the need for a system to quickly establish seasonal dramas like overseas. He added that “creating a system that didn’t exist in an industry is quite difficult.”
Amidst this, there is growing anticipation over whether ‘Squid Game 2’, which is attracting global attention, can break the cycle of disappointing sequels in seasonal dramas. It remains to be seen how Netflix will lead the success of seasonal dramas and create a new turning point for global K-Content.
