[Last Updated on April 28, 2023]
After producing more and more original K-dramas, Netflix is now getting closer than ever to seeing its series win a top prize at the prestigious Baeksang Arts Awards.
The streaming giant has a record-breaking presence at this year’s Baeksang Arts Awards, with its six original dramas being nominated for a total of 10 awards. This is the highest number of shows for any TV channel or streaming service this year. Overall, 18 series from five channels and two streaming services have earned at least one nomination.
This is a major win for Netflix, which had only two series (“Extracurricular” and “Sweet Home”) nominated for an award in 2021 and one (“Kingdom Season 1”) in 2020. In contrast, almost half or 23 out of the 48 drama nominees this year represent its six originals alone.
Among the six, “Squid Game”—which made history at the 2022 SAG Awards early this year—boasts the most number of nominations, with eight. In fact, it heads into the 2022 Baeksang Arts Awards with more nominations than any other series. The immensely popular show remains the most watched non-English series on Netflix globally within 28 days of release with 1.65 billion hour views.
“D.P.” follows with five nominations and competes against “Squid Game” for the best drama, best director, and best actor awards. Meanwhile, “Juvenile Justice” has earned three nominations for best screenplay, best actress, and best new actress.
“All of Us Are Dead,” which is now Netflix’s second biggest original Korean series launch (next to “Squid Game”), has two nominations for the rookie actor awards while “Hellbound” and “My Name” have one each.
Netflix released a total of eight original Korean dramas between April 12, 2021 to March 31, 2022, the eligibility period for this year’s nominees. “Move to Heaven” and “The Silent Sea” were its only series released within this period that did not get nominated.
Lee Je-hoon starred in both “Move to Heaven” and SBS’s “Taxi Driver,” which is among some of the highest rated Korean dramas in 2021 that failed to secure a spot in the list of nominees. Meanwhile, Gong Yoo and Bae Doo-na, who both already won a Baeksang award in the past, played the main characters in “The Silent Sea.”
Among non-Netflix shows, MBC’s “The Red Sleeve” is the strongest contender with seven nominations. It is vying with “Squid Game,” “D.P,” tvN’s “Twenty Five Twenty One,” and wavve’s “Political Fever” to win Best Drama.
Now on its 58th edition, the Baeksang Arts Awards is an annual event that honors the best works in TV, film, and theater in South Korea. The TV category hands out a total of 15 awards including the Grand Prize, 11 of which can be won by a drama.
This year’s awards will be presented on May 6 in a live ceremony that will be broadcast on JTBC at 7:45 pm KST.
See below the complete list of drama awards nominees and the previous year’s winners:
Best Drama:
- D.P. (Netflix)
- Twenty Five Twenty One (tvN)
- Squid Game (Netflix)
- The Red Sleeve (MBC)
- Political Fever (wavve)
Previous Year’s Winner: Beyond Evil (JTBC)
Best Director:
- Yoon Sung-ho (“Political Fever”)
- Lee Na-jung (“Mine”)
- Jung Ji-in (“The Red Sleeve”)
- Han Jun-hee (“D.P.”)
- Hwang Dong-hyuk (“Squid Game”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Kim Cheol-kyu (“Flower of Evil”)
Best Screenplay:
- Kim Min-seok (“Juvenile Justice”)
- Kim Hong-ki, Park Nu-ri, Choi Sung-jin, Yoon Sung-ho (“Political Fever”)
- Baek Mi-kyung (“Mine”)
- Lee Na-eun (“Our Beloved Summer”)
- Hwang Dong-hyuk (“Squid Game”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Kim Su-jin (“Beyond Evil”)
Best Actor:
- Kim Nam-gil (“Through the Darkness)
- Lee Jung-jae (“Squid Game”)
- Lee Junho (“The Red Sleeve”)
- Im Siwan (“Tracer”)
- Jung Hae-in (“D.P.”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Shin Ha-kyun (“Beyond Evil”)
Best Actress:
- Kim Tae-ri (“Twenty Five Twenty One”)
- Kim Hye-soo (“Juvenile Justice”)
- Park Eun-bin (“The Kings Affection”)
- Lee Se-young (“The Red Sleeve”)
- Han So-hee (“My Name”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Kim So-yeon (“The Penthouse: War in Life”)
Best Supporting Actor:
- Lee Deok-hwa (“The Red Sleeve”)
- Lee Hak-joo (“Political Fever”)
- Lee Hyun-wook (“Mine”)
- Cho Hyun-chul (“D.P.”)
- Heo Sung-tae (“Squid Game”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Oh Jung-se (“It’s Okay to Not Be Okay”)
Best Supporting Actress:
- Kang Mal-geum (“Thirty Nine”)
- Kim Shin-rok (“Hellbound”)
- Kim Joo-ryung (“Squid Game”)
- Ok Ja-yeon (“Mine”)
- Jang Hye-jin (“The Red Sleeve”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Yeom Hye-ran (“The Uncanny Counter”)
Best New Actor:
- Goo Kyo-hwan (“D.P.”)
- Shin Seung-ho (“D.P.”)
- Yoo In-soo (“All of Us Are Dead”)
- Choi Hyun-wook (“Twenty Five Twenty One”)
- Tang Joon-sang (“Racket Boys”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Lee Do-hyun (“18 Again”)
Best New Actress:
- Kim Hye-joon (“D.P.”)
- Lee Yeon (“D.P.”)
- Lee Yoo-mi (“All of Us Are Dead”)
- Jung Ho-yeon (“Squid Game”)
- Cho Yi-hyun (“All of Us Are Dead”)
Previous Year’s Winner: Park Ju-hyun (“Extracurricular”)
Technical Award:
- Kwon Tae-eun (Music) – non-drama nominee
- Kim Hwa-young (Cinematography) – “The Red Sleeve”
- Eom Young-shik, Kim Da-hee (Animation) – “Yumi’s Cells”
- Jung Jae-il (Music) – “Squid Game”
- Chae Kyung-sun (Art Direction) – “Squid Game”
Previous Year’s Winner: Cho Sang-kyung (Costume design) – “It’s Okay to Not Be Okay”