Korean cinema's appetite for remakes faces its biggest test of the year this week. Director Kim Do-young's The Intern (2026), a Korean adaptation of the 2015 Hollywood comedy featuring Choi Min-sik in the role originally played by Robert De Niro, opens on September 16 ahead of the Chuseok holiday. It is the most prominent entry yet in a trend that has been building for over two decades.

While Korean cinema has not been dependent on existing intellectual property to the same extent as Hollywood, creators have and continue to turn to IP. This trend in the wider content industry is accelerating with webtoons in particular remaining a major source of IP. The Netflix series Mousetrap (2026) that topped the platform's top ten Non-English shows earlier this month is an illustration of that. It's based on the Kakao webtoon Field Mouse.

2000s & 2010s

Intimate Strangers (2018)

A palpable trend in the industry encompassing both dramas and films is remakes. In Korean cinema this is not new with remakes evident in the 2000s such as My Little Bride (2004) based on the Hong Kong film My Wife Is 18 (2002). It wasn't until the 2010s, however, that remakes became more common. Hong Kong and Japan would be a significant source of titles with A Better Tomorrow (2010) (based on John Woo's 1986 film of the same name), Cold Eyes (2013) (a remake of the Hong Kong thriller Eye in the Sky (2007)), Believer (2018) (a reworking of Johnnie To's Drug War (2012)) and Be With You (2018) (based on the Japanese melodrama of the same name).

It wasn't just films from Asia producers were turning to but to other parts of the world. The sex comedy Casa Amor: Exclusive for Ladies (2015) is based on the Brazilian film De Pernas pro Ar (2010). In 2018 there were several remakes in addition to the aforementioned Believer. Lee Jae-kyoo's Intimate Strangers (2018) sourced from the Italian feature Perfect Strangers (2016) was a sleeper hit pulling in 5.2 million viewers, while Lee Kwon's Door Lock (2018) drew its story from the Spanish film Sleep Tight (2011).

Early 2020s

Confession (2022)

In the 2020s remakes are now commonly seen on the big screen. In the days of the pandemic, Remember (2022) based on the 2015 Canadian film of the same name and Confession (2022) that is a remake of the Spanish film The Invisible Guest (2016) were both released. Korean directors don't simply relocate the original to Korea, they find ways to ensure the reworking of the narrative connects with local viewers in the Korean market – and their success in the mid-to-late 2010s and 2020s suggests they are doing so. Local remakes are securing exposure overseas with Confession screening at the Fribourg Film Festival, Udine Far East Film Festival and Fantasia International Film Festival. Remember was pre-sold to 115 countries including North America and France. It shifts its backdrop from Nazi Germany to the Japanese colonial era when an elderly man now in his 80s in present-day Korea is seeking revenge for the family he lost.

Mid-2020s

Pilot (2024)

In 2024 three remakes broke out. Kim Han-gyul's Pilot (2024) based on the Swedish film Cockpit (2012) was the biggest hit of the summer selling 4.7 million tickets. The horror comedy Handsome Guys (2024) garnered an enthusiastic following with the film playing for weeks allowing it to break even with 1.7 million tickets sold. The film is a remake of the Canadian film Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2010).

Hidden Face (2024)

Further demonstrating the appetite for remakes was Kim Dae-woo's Hidden Face (2024), an erotic mystery thriller that was the first R-rated Korean film to accumulate 1 million admissions since the beginning of the pandemic. The film takes its story centering on the disappearance of a woman from the 2011 Spanish-Colombian original, The Hidden Face.

These films would continue to be released in 2025 with the melodrama Secret: Untold Melody (2025) based on the Taiwanese film Secret (2007). The film broke even selling over 800,000 tickets. It was one of several features that have been sourced from Taiwanese films – Hear Me: Our Summer (2024) was another example. Also hitting screens in 2025 was Ha Jung-woo's comedy-drama The People Upstairs (2025) that is an adaptation of the Spanish film of the same name by Cesc Gay. A US remake The Invite (2026) starring Seth Rogen was released there in June.

Once We Were Us (2025)

Kim Do-young's Once We Were Us (2025) based on the Chinese film Us and Them (2018) was released on December 31, 2025. It follows a couple as they fall in and out of love starring Koo Kyo-hwan and Moon Ga-young. It was popular amongst young people in early 2026 accruing 2.6 million admissions highlighting the appeal of melodramas for Generation Z viewers with further tangible signs that the Korean film industry is mounting a recovery and reconnecting with audiences.

The Intern (2026)

Director Kim Do-young has a further remake out this year with The Intern, in which Han So-hee co-stars as the CEO of the fashion company. In many respects Korea is an intriguing setting given the importance placed on age in Korean society with these dynamics playing out throughout the film's narrative as the older intern increasingly makes his presence felt in the company. The film is being distributed and financed by Warner Bros. Korea, its first Korean title since Killing Romance (2023).

Its performance during the Chuseok holiday season will provide us with more data as to how the industry is faring. It is a season that has traditionally pulled in both young and older audiences but with this changing it is unclear how this film will fare. Nevertheless, given its strong reception at the premiere early in September and with the original remaining well-known, it is well-positioned to further capitalize on the popularity of remakes.

Over the holiday, Netflix will also release a series that closely relates to existing content; this time a film. Jung Ji-woo's series The Scandal (2026) starring Son Ye-jin, Ji Chang-wook and Nana is inspired by E J-yong's film Untold Scandal (2003) that itself is a reworking of the French novel Les Liaisons dangereuses (1782). This follows the drama Spooky in Love (2026) that is an adaptation of the Korean film Spellbound (2011), while the well-received series The Scarecrow (2026) based on The Hwaseong Murders has drawn inevitable comparisons to Bong Joon Ho's Memories of Murder (2003). It all highlights the increasingly interrelated nature of both films and dramas as remakes remain a draw.

Written by Jason Bechervaise
Edited by kofic