For the first time, Netflix released an extremely transparent engagement report, laying bare all the viewing data of over 18,000 movies and TV shows on the platform worldwide. We’ve looked at the impact of K-dramas on Netflix in the first half of 2023, and here’s everything we’ve learned so far.
Over the past decade, the rise in media consumption from South Korea has been beyond meteoric. Some of the most significant names in the world of music are from the Korean peninsula, not to mention the vast number of movies and television shows that have become available to Netflix subscribers over the past several years.
Netflix has invested billions of dollars into content from South Korea. That investment is being significantly rewarded thanks to the success of K-dramas such as Squid Game, All of Us Are Dead, The Glory, and the large number of weekly K-dramas arriving on Netflix week to week.
From the engagement report released by Netflix, the first half of 2023 is proving to be another exemplary year for K-dramas. Here’s what we learned about K-dramas in the first half of 2023:
K-dramas make up 15% of the 100 most-watched movies and TV shows
The first half of 2023 has proven that K-dramas remain extremely popular on Netflix, making up 15% of the 100 most-watched films and TV shows in the first half of 2023.
From titles only in the top 100 most watched globally, Netflix subscribers have watched 2,732,800,000 (2.732 billion) hours of content from South Korea. In total, this equated to approximately 222,255,035 Netflix views.
The Glory is the most popular K-drama on Netflix in 2023 so far
What will be unsurprising to many The Glory is the K-drama star on Netflix in 2023. Ranked third as the most-watched title on Netflix in the first half of 2023, only being beaten by The Night Agent and the second season of Ginny & Georgia.
In total, Netflix subscribers have spent 622,800,000 hours in 2023 watching The Glory. This equates to approximately 74,438,247 views.
The Glory – Hwa and Dam Pictures
Extraordinary Attorney Woo & Crash Landing on You remain extremely popular on Netflix
Crash Landing on You began streaming on Netflix almost four years ago. In that time, it has consistently been one of the platform’s strongest-performing and most beloved K-dramas. Across the six months, the K-drama was watched for 120,300,000 hours, which equates to roughly 5.29 million views.
In the first half of 2023, Crash Landing on You ranked 73rd as the most-watched title on Netflix.
Pictured: Crash Landing on You -tvN
Extraordinary Attorney Woo was the most-watched weekly K-drama on Netflix in 2022. Less than a year on, the K-drama still retains its popularity. In the first half of 2023, it amassed 135,900,000 hours viewed, roughly 7,196,823 views.
In the first half of 2023, Extraordinary Attorney Woo ranked 59th as the most-watched title on Netflix.
With a second season on the way, there’s a lot to be happy about if you’re a fan of the K-drama.
Pictured: Extraordinary Attorney Woo – AStory
Squid Game is still going strong, with over 10 million views
As the highest-performing series in Netflix history, it shouldn’t be too surprising to anyone that Squid Game still retains a healthy audience.
However, Netflix will be more than happy knowing that Squid Game added 87,200,000 hours to its total watch time, equating to a further 10.59 million views for the K-drama.
Squid Game is ranked 120th in the number of hours viewed on Netflix in the first half of 2023.
Picture: Squid Game – Siren Pictures
All of Us Are Dead Sinks Below 100 million hours but ranks just outside of the top 100
If it weren’t for Squid Game, All of Us Are Dead would be the highest-performing K-drama in Netflix history. The K-drama has performed well in 2023, even outperforming Squid Game by almost 7 million hours for 94,600,000 hours viewed.
However, thanks to the show’s total runtime, All of Us Are Dead failed to beat Squid Game for the total number of new Netflix views, amassing roughly 7,796,703, almost 2.8 million shy of what Squid Game achieved.
Regardless, with both K-dramas renewed and second seasons on the way, there’s a whole heap to be excited about.
Picture: All of Us Are Dead – Film Monster Co.
Can the second half of 2023 outperform the first?
While there have been plenty of new and exciting K-dramas in the second half of 2023, none have stacked up against the popularity of The Glory. We haven’t seen any signs of a K-drama matching the popularity of the aforementioned. Still, we expect more South Korean titles to occupy the top 100 most-watched movies and TV shows in 2023.
Thanks to the release of Squid Game: The Challange, we may also see a rise in the number of subscribers rewatching Squid Game in the second half of 2023.
What are your thoughts on K-dramas in 2023? Let us know in the comments below!