Netflix Korea, on 3 November, announced the renewal of its famed original thriller drama Kingdom for a second season, and a possible March 2020 release.
Season 1 of Kingdom premiered in January 2019, making the drama the first original Korean series to be produced by Netflix.
Based on famed playwright and screenwriter, Kim Eun-hee and illustrator, Yang Kyung-il’s webcomic, ‘The Kingdom of the Gods’ or ‘Land of the Gods’, Kingdom is a fantasy/ horror series in a historical setting. Much like many other high-grossing K-drama, it blends genres seamlessly and has hence fostered a large fan base in South Korea and the world over.
Season 1 of the zombie-apocalyptic themed drama is composed of a total of 6 episodes and stars Ju Ji-hoon, Bae Doo-na, Ryu Seung-Ryong, Kim Sung-kyu and Kim Sang-ho. It is also confirmed that the second season, which began filming in February, will feature new faces to play crucial roles in the series, including Park Byung-eun and Kim Tae-hoon.
Netflix’s synopsis for Kingdom reads:
In a kingdom defeated by corruption and famine, a mysterious rumor of the king’s death spreads, as does a strange plague that renders the infected immune to death and hungry for flesh. The crown prince, fallen victim to a conspiracy, sets out on a journey to unveil the evil scheme and save his people.
Netflix
Kingdom is set in the Korean era of the Joseon Dynasty, a period in Korean history that lasted five centuries (1392-1897). The scenes unfolding in the drama take place a little after the Japanese Invasion of Korea in the late 16th century.
There are strange rumours surrounding the ruling King and some of the kingdom’s southern provinces that have been affected by a plague turning people into a violent undead army of killers.
The peculiar epidemic becomes a political conspiracy and all hopes are pinned on Yi-chang (Ju Ji-hoon), the Crown Prince, to investigate the problem. Accompanied by his physician, Seo-bi (Bae Doo-na), his personal guard Moo-young (Kim Sang-ho) and Yeong-shin (Kim Sang-kyu), they set out on a quest to get to the bottom of the strange happenings.
They attempt to stop the plague from advancing on the Kingdom’s capital city, Hanyang (present-day Seoul), while also putting an end to Minister Cho Hak-ju’s (Ryu Seung-ryong) sinister plans to dethrone the Crown Prince.
Season 2 will continue to follow Crown Prince Yi-chang on his journey to eradicate the plague, and fight to maintain his right to the throne.
Kingdom is directed by Kim Seong-hun and has been given a solid 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch the trailer here:
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