Bloodhounds producer Studio N has a new season of the Netflix drama about to drop, a Series Mania screening of The Legend of Kitchen Soldier, and its biggest ever show, The Remarried Empress, launching later this year. There’s also an adaptation of Gosu in development with Toei.
Mikyung (Michelle) Kwon, Studio N’s CEO, is at Series Mania, with Korea the drama fest’s first ever Country of Honor. The N in Studio N stands for ‘Next’ and Kwon told Deadline about bringing Korean webtoons to life and what’s coming up.
In terms of access to IP, it helps that the production label is owed by Webtoon Entertainment, owner of the Webtoon and Wattpad platforms. David Madden recently told us how Webtoon Entertainment’s LA-based Webtoon Productions is harvesting web comics and web novel IP. Studio N is doing the same, but bringing Korean-language fare to the international market.
“One of the goals of our company is IP adaptation, so we are not just going to focus on The Legend of the Kitchen Soldier,” Kwon explains of her mission at Series Mania.
The Remarried Empress launches on Disney+ later this year and will be Studio N’s biggest budget show yet. Starring Shin Min-a, Ju Ji-hoon, Lee Jong-suk, and Lee Se-young, it is a live-action adaptation of the massively popular webtoon. The fantasy story is set in a world of emperors and empresses, with castles and lavish costumes.
Studio N boss Mikyung (Michelle) Kwo
Studio N
“It is a very famous web comic series and one of the largest IPs that we have,” Kwon said. “It’s similar to Bridgerton, but the eastern version. Everyone will have the traditional costumes, and there will be kings and queens. It’s a little different from the traditional Korean history that you’re used to.” The series shot in Korea and the Czech Republic.
Kwon said she keeps getting asked how Studio N will adapt a romantasy webcomic into live-action. Studios N’s approach is to stick close to the look of the source material, right down to the costumes: “This title was very popular worldwide, and we wanted to maintain the attire the characters wore in the web comic and Disney+ bought into this idea.”
Before that show drops on streaming there will be more Bloodhounds. The first outing followed two young boxers, played by Woo Do-hwan and Lee Sang-yi, as they took on a notorious criminal. Season 2 launches on April 3. “In Season 1 the two young characters come out with a lot of action scenes, and I think that same can be expected in Season 2,” Kwon said. “We’ve thought long and hard about who we should select as the villain for this season and Jung Ji-hoon is the person. He’s a very popular singer in Korea.”
Here at Series Mania, Studio N’s The Legend of Kitchen Soldier was picked by the Festival as Special Screening. “Rarely does a drama embrace such freedom and a gonzo joy,” Series Mania said of its selection. The series, based on a popular webtoon stars Park Ji-hoon as a young recruit on his way to becoming a legendary army cook. The webcomic has registered 650M global views.
“It is a coming of age story of a kitchen soldier,” Kwon explained of the series, which was made with CJ ENM’s Studio Dragon. “Park Ji-hoon starred in The Man Who Lives With the King, a movie that was released in Korea in January. It became so popular and this is his next project to be released. I think we can enjoy some ripple over effects from the success of that film.”
Looking beyond 2026, Studio N is working on an adaptation of Korean webtoon Gosu with Toei, producer of the animated shows Dragon Ball and One Piece. “We are co-developing this together right now,” Kwon said. “We’ve developed a pilot, now we’re in the process of finding a platform. I think we’ll be able to release this in the next two years.”