If today you hear the name South Korea probably the first thing to hit your mind would be their dramas and movies. Today there would hardly be anyone who won’t love watching it. There have been many remakes of it in other countries’ movie industries. Such is the recognition they have made in this niche. With such an impeccable script. good acting and direction, a lot goes into the making of a single best hit. But when the results are amazing all the hard work is worth it. Here let us look at the top 10 high-budget Korean dramas and movies of all time.
1. Arthdal Chronicles (2019)
This is a historical drama. It was expensive for a lot of reasons. First is the fact that it is historical fiction so a lot of money goes into the set design costumes, and CGI effects. Also, there were some very high-paid Korean actors like Song Joong-ki, Kim Ji-won, and Jang Dong-gun. The story revolves around a mythical land named Arth which was occupied by various mythical heroes with the elements of course love and loss surrounding it. Its overall budget was KRW 54 billion.
2. The Legend (2007)
The legend is a historical drama and probably one of the oldest dramas that were made with one of the biggest actors. They definitely charged millions. This drama also had heavy sets, costumes, beautiful locations, and effects. The main cast in this drama includes actors such as Oh Kwang-rok, Choi Min-su, Moon So-ri, and Park Sang-won. The theme of the drama revolves around the reincarnation of God Damdeok (Yong-jun Bae) who guides the people of the kingdom to the path of salvation. The production cost was approx. KRW 40 billion.
3. Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area (2022)
The announcement of this drama was made just after the original Spanish drama “Money Heist” concluded. This drama is packed with action and thriller starring actors like Yoo JiTae, Kim YunJin, and Park HaeSoo. This series has 12 episodes and in most of the action sequences, CGI effects have been used. The estimated cost of this drama came to be around KRW 40 billion.
4. Mr. Sunshine
This is a period drama that ran for 24 episodes. As it has a historical element a lot of the budget has gone into CGI effects, location, set design, costumes, and of course the star-studded cast which was paid heavily. It has also been reported that famous actor Lee Byung-hun who has also acted in a couple of Hollywood movies has taken around 150 million won per episode. The drama received critical acclaim and praise too. This drama’s overall budget was KRW 40 billion.
5. Alchemy Of Souls (2022)
Alchemy of souls (2022) is a historical, fantasy drama starring Lee Jae Wook, Jung So Min, Hwang Min Hyun, Shin Seung Ho, and many more. This series has a total of 20 episodes with lots of special effects and CGI. For this drama, a new set was created which cost most of the budget. This movie’s overall budget was KRW 40 billion. Thus, making another high-budget drama.
6. Bulgasal: Immortal Souls (2021)
Set in 16 episodes this drama is another historical fiction and thriller with power-packed effects set design, costumes, and visuals. Various techniques such as body transformations have been discovered in this show which is why the makers were ready to spend that much amount of money with the only aim in mind to get the right visuals and that’s why this series got that huge budget. The overall budget was around KRW 40 billion.
7. Reborn Rich (2022)
This series rewinds in 16 episodes. It is basically a business and fancy drama with actors including Song Joong Ki, Lee Sung Min, and Shin Hyun Bin in the lead roles. This drama also stars veteran actors who took a slightly higher fee. The total production cost was estimated at 35 billion Korean won.
8. Kingdom 1 And 2 (2019-2020)
This is just not historical fiction but one with a touch of the zombie apocalypse. Originally, this series was to have 8 episodes but was cut short to only 6 due to budget constraints. This series also has one of big names to its cast like Ju Ji-hoon, Bae Doona and Ryu Seung-Yong. It was also stated that the per-episode cost was estimated to be around KRW 3 billion.
9. Narco – Saints (2022)
Narco-saints is a 2022 action-thriller drama. It is a 6 episodes series and includes the cast Ha JungWoo, Hwang JungMin, and Park HaeSoo in prominent roles. Also, the main character has flown to many locations in this drama thereby increasing the cost of the overall production. Meanwhile, the actors were also paid well. The series had to be shot in different locations.
10. Penthouse: War In Life 1, 2, &3
This popular drama with all the three seasons combined made the budget of KRW 32 billion. These three combined has a total of 48 episodes with actors like Lee Ji Ah, Kim So Yeon, and Eugene in the main lead.
