October is shaping up to be an exciting month for K-drama fans with projects featuring big names like Cha Eun-Woo, Bae Suzy and Kim Ro-Woon. Scroll through this list to check out what your favorite star’s next show is all about.
A Good Day to be a Dog
If you loved Cha Eun-Woo in ‘True Beauty’ and ‘Rookie Historian’, you will be happy to watch him back in another romantic comedy. Starring Park Gyu-Young, the serial revolves around a woman who is cursed to turn into a dog every midnight, and she must find the man who can help her break this spell, but it turns out that he is also deeply terrified of dogs. The series is set to stream on Netflix from October 11.
The Wedding Battle
K-Drama fans who can’t get enough of Kim Ro-Woon in ‘Destined With You’ are in for a treat with his upcoming rom-com. In this historical drama, the heart throb plays a widow, who teams up with a rival matchmaker to marry off four young maidens. But circumstances change when the two matchmakers realise they’re falling for each other. The series is set to premier from October 30.
Doona!
‘Alchemy of Souls’ actress Bae Suzy is set to come back after a year with ‘Doona!’ where she plays a singer in a band, who shocks audiences by announcing her retirement, and begins living in a shared home with a college student. The nine-episode series will release on Netflix on October 20.
Doctor Slump
Starring Park Hyung Sik (Strong Girl Bong-Soon) and Park Shin-Hye (The Inheritors), the drama is a slice of life focusing on four doctors who are burned out from their profession. The two meet at the time they’re at the lowest point of their lives and are trying to rediscover themselves after quitting their jobs.
For fans in Pakistan who are bummed out on missing the opportunity to watch Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Jawan’ in theatres, there is finally a chance to see the film because the action thriller is coming to OTT platforms quite soon. According to India Today, the film is set to release on streaming platforms with a special twist: it will include scenes that were omitted from the theatrical release.
While the film was approximately two hours and 45 minutes long, the OTT release is expected to be 3 hours and 15 minutes with the extra scenes.
There is no release date confirmed yet by the team or Netflix.
‘Jawan’ has recently broken records, becoming one of the fastest Bollywood films to join the 500 crore club, beating Shah Rukh Khan’s previous film ‘Pathaan’ and Sunny Deol’s ‘Gadar 2’ according to Bollywood Hungama.
As the SAG-AFTRA strikes continue to loom across Hollywood, several major stars have spoken up against streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon and Disney, accusing them of exploiting actors and writers.
Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul, who played Jessie on the hit show, has spoken at a picket line about not receiving any residuals from Netflix.
Residuals are financial compensation provided to actors and writers who are innvolved in TV shows or movies aired after the release.
Speaking next to co-stars Bryan Cranston and Jesse Plemons, Paul told Entertainment Tonight Canada:
“I don’t get a piece from Netflix on ‘Breaking Bad’ to be totally honest and that’s insane to me, you know what I mean.”
“Shows live forever on these streamers and it goes through waves,” said the three-time Emmy award winner. “And I just saw the other day that ‘Breaking Bad’ was trending on Netflix, and it’s just such common sense, and I think a lot of these streamers, they know they have been getting away with not paying people just fair wage and now it’s time to pony up, and that’s just one of the things we’re fighting for.”
Aaron played the eccentric high schooler who partners with his chemistry teacher Walter White (played by Cranston) to make drugs. The show received critical acclaim and led to a spin-off ‘Better Call Saul’ which centered around the crook lawyer Saul Goodman.
In light of the protests, several actors have come forward to make shocking revelations of how little compensation they received from platforms, even though their shows received massive ratings on streaming platforms.
‘This Is Us’ actor Mandy Moore revealed in July that despite being a lead actor on the hit series, she received only 81 cent checks as residuals from 21st century Fox.
Katie Lowes, who starred in the ABC political drama ‘Scandal’ for several seasons, also revealed she didn’t receive any residuals for her work:
“If you are someone who has been fortunate enough in our positions to do 120-plus episodes of a successful show in previous years — 10, 15, 20 years ago — that re-airing would be the thing that could sustain you on years where I did this smaller project or I wanted to go do a play or you have kids and you have a family to provide for,” Lowes said. “And that’s just not a reality anymore. The entire model has changed.”
Famed Indian director Zoya Akhtar is set to release her Netflix film ‘The Archies’ on December 7 on the streaming giant. The film stars babies from all the royal acting families of Bollywood: Suhana Khan, Khushi Kapoor, Vedang Raina, Agastya Nanda, Mihir Ahuja, Aditi Saigal and Yuvraj Menda. In an interview with Vogue, the ‘Made In Heaven’ creator opened up about how she prepped all the newcomers for the film and how they became close friends with one another.
Speaking to Vogue, Akhtar said she set up an intense boot camp, and made the actors go through acting workshops, dance training and everything else.
“I wanted them to be comfortable from the get-go. There are 200 people on set, there’s a camera in your face and you have to go up and perform when the word ‘action’ is said. It’s daunting.”
She added, “I wanted them to be over all of that by the time they came to set, so it was very important for them to get along with one another. There was this big boot camp where they had dance classes, acting workshops and cinematography training.”
Zoya also revealed she was happy the actors became close friends with each other, and hoped they championed each other through the course of their careers:
“I hope they champion each other throughout the course of their respective careers because they’ve been so good – they’ve been good for each other and they’ve been good with each other.”
When the trailer was released on social media platforms, many criticised how all the actors came from acting families, and the fact that all the characters were fair skinned and didn’t look Indian. Speaking to Mid-Day at TUDUM, Zoya addressed the backlash saying:
“Why do you think that? They’re all Indian. This is kind of reverse (racism). Are you saying fair Indians are not Indians? How do we define what an Indian looks like? It could be Hrithik Roshan, it could be Mr. Rajinikanth, it could be Diljit Dosanjh, it could be Mary Kom. That’s the beauty of India. There are a lot of Indians that are light-skinned.”
Its now official that Pakistan is about to get it’s first ever Netflix drama, starring our own actors. In July journalist Hassan Kazmi broke the news on social media, announcing that Lollywood’s A-list celebrities like Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan and Hamza Ali Abbasi are set to star in a Netflix adaptation of Farhat Ishtiaq’s novel ‘Jo Bachay Hain Sang Samiat Lo’, with director Momina Duraid on board.
Now, Variety has revealed kay waqai mein the drama will live up to its name by leaving no actor behind, as the cast is chockfull of Pakistani A-listers like Sanam Saeed, Ahad Raza Mir, Bilal Ashraf, Maya Ali , Iqra Aziz , Hania Aamir , Khushaal Khan, Nadia Jamil , Omair Rana and Samina Ahmed.
According to the publication, Momina Duraid will serve as the show runner, and her firm Momina Duraid Films FZ, will be producing the series. The show is currently being shot in US, Italy and Pakistan.
The novel revolves around Sikandar, a Harvard law student who undergoes an incident that compels him to keep people away. He then comes across Lisa when he’s travelling to Italy, an energetic artist with a troubled past.
Ishtiaq’s other novels ‘Humsafar’ was adapted into the critically acclaimed 2011 drama, starring Mahira and Fawad. Her other novels have also been turned into screen fare, including ‘Bin Roye’ which was adapted into a 2015 film starring Humayun Saeed and Mahira, and ‘Yakeen Ka Safar’ which was adapted in 2017 into a drama starring Sajal Aly and Ahad Raza Mir.
Fawad is riding high on the blockbuster ‘The Legend Of Maula Jatt’ which also starred Mahira Khan and Hamza. He is set to come back to television screens with the series ‘Barzakh’ starring Sanam Saeed, and directed/ written by Asim Abbas.
Netflix is expanding its gaming initiative by testing games on a wider range of devices, including TVs and computers, in addition to mobile phones. The initial testing is starting in Canada and the United Kingdom, with select subscribers getting to try out games on their TVs. Two games, “Oxenfree” and “Molehew’s Mining Adventure,” will be part of this test phase.
For TV gaming, the games will be available on devices from partners like Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, LG, Nvidia Shield, Roku, and Samsung Smart TVs. Notably absent is the Apple TV. More devices will be supported in the future.
Netflix recently launched an iPhone game controller app that connects to TV-based games through a QR code displayed on the Netflix app.
Gaming on PCs and Macs will use keyboard and mouse controls.
During the beta phase, Netflix aims to refine its game-streaming technology and improve the user experience.
According to Tech Crunch, Mike Verdu, Netflix’s VP of Games, emphasises the company’s excitement about expanding gaming to more devices while acknowledging the early stage of their gaming journey.
Netflix’s move into gaming was hinted at last year, along with the establishment of a gaming studio in Southern California.
Verdu clarifies that Netflix’s gaming approach differs from traditional platforms like PlayStation and Xbox, focusing on a unique business model for seamless gaming.
In the upcoming year, Netflix plans to launch a total of 40 games, with 16 from their in-house studios and 70 more in partnership with developers. Since starting in gaming in 2021, Netflix has already released 70 mobile titles.
The weekend is here and we know you need to divert your attention from politician shenanigans. We get it, your brain is completely drained and you can’t make a decision on what show to watch. You need a change, a good distraction so we’re suggesting Korean dramas.
Yeah okay, you can’t watch shows with subtitles because its too distracting (but then how did you grow up watching Bollywood because their shows have different accents too, right?) It’s true that many of us are completely taken aback by how quickly and suddenly the Korean wave has gripped the entire world. But most importantly, how did Korean dramas suddenly become every woman’s comfort show?
I’ve been watching Korean dramas for the past three years and one of the things that drew me in was the gorgeous story telling, and how women in these shows were complex, well written, never shying away from reveling in their internal conflicts and desires to be the way they want to be. Coming from a lifetime of watching Bollywood or local television dramas where dramas written for women involved sexism, violence, or poorly, flat characters ending with happy marriages, changing my comfort watch seemed more like putting my mind at ease. Another thing, people commonly have shared as a token aspect they have come to adore about Korean dramas is how they offer an escape to a reality and culture completely different from their own. Quite commonly since the pandemic began and more people were locked up inside, Korean content offered a sense of ease with its architecture, the food or customs, and even how themes like building your own family offered a sense of relief for millennials bound by patriarchal customs of South Asian countries.
Give your doubts some ease, and take our advice that yes, there is a good reason why you won’t stop hearing Jung Kook’s ‘Seven’ on the radio. Take it from us and dedicate your Saturday night to one of these five recommendations we’re offering you, based on some of popular tropes loved by social media users.
If you love high school romances, then watch ‘True Beauty’
If high-school romances are what you love, then this is the drama you should watch. And also, if you’re completely into watching hot men, then yes Chan Eun-Woo is a good option. It follows an insecure teenager Lim Joo kyung, who was bullied for her looks and decides to change schools, as well as start wearing more makeup. As she navigates learning to be comfortable in her own skin, as well as her budding romance with the school’s resident hot boy Lee Su-hoo, you won’t help but get drawn into the wholesome storytelling, as well as how lovable and endearing Joo kyung is.
‘Fake dating but he falls harder for her’? Take ‘Her Private Life’
Deok Mi has a secret- she’s obsessed with the boyband White Ocean, like she’s obsessed OBSESSED. Watches all their concerts, runs a fan blog dedicated to Cha Si-An, even has posters all over her apartment. But when during a work assignment, she is snapped by paparazzi and mistaken to be Si-An’s girlfriend, quickly turns her into a target for hyper fan girls and makes her life even harder. When her boss, the uptight, stingy Ryan Gold steps into pretend to be her boyfriend to dispel the rumors, they agree to date until the rumors die down and everyone is convinced Si-An is taken. Ryan even has someone else, nothing will happen right…right?
Friends to lovers will make you wail, but not the way ‘Romance Is A Bonus Book’ will.
The worst day of Cha Eun-Ho’s life was when the longtime love of his life, and childhood best friend Dan-I married her high school sweetheart, completely sealing his heart to the possibility that anyone would suit him as he ascends the world of publishing. But the ground completely crumbles under his feet when he finds out that five years later after they cut off contact, Dan-I is homeless after her husband abandoned her and their daughter to make a new family. The two decide to live together, much to Eun-Ho’s dismay, as Dan-I takes on a job as an intern and obscures her CV to pretend she is a college dropout, not a marketing professional with years of experience. But as much as the two try to remain friends to keep their plot going, Eun-Ho realises he isn’t over Dan-i, and neither is she over him.
Enemies to lovers is *chef’s kiss*? ‘Shooting Stars’ will make you wish you had someone
Oh Han-Byul is the cranky, over-worked PR manager working for a leading celebrity agency, where she is directly responsible for handling Korea’s top celebrity, Gong Tae-Sun. His endless requests and hectic fanbase is the reason why Han Byul has a depleting dating life, no social skills, and a lifelong agenda to be the one to put Tae Sung in his grave. But as a scandal emerges which puts their relationship in a different light the two realised they are both heading towards a path that would be difficult to turn back from.
He’s a human, she’s an immortal being? ‘Legend of the blue sea’ is definitely for you
Forbidden love between an immortal being and a mortal will clench your heart, but this korean drama will become the reason why you cancel the last part of your social life. Heo Jung-Jae is a con-artist, a way to support himself after cutting off his father and supporting himself. He tricks billionaires into handing them their valuable assets to him, and escapes without a trace. But during a vacation to Spain, his accidental encounter with the mermaid Shim Cheong forces him to confide into his past life as a Joseon emperor who made the fatal mistake to fall in love with a mermaid and brought about his doom.
‘Heart of Stone’, Netflix’s new thriller starring Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt and Gal Gadot has brought out every critic’s stone heart. The spy thriller about an international secret agent who must use all means to protect the mysterious MacGuffin known as ‘Heart of Stone’ has been slammed by critics for its generic plot and poor performances with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 4.9/10.
Variety called the film “joyless, convoluted, and sludgy-looking” as well as a “degraded descendant of Bond thrillers”. Their review described the film as a laborious two hours long weary form of bloat without a plot and an endless chain of events filled with action sequences.
Mashable wrote that the film has glaring similarities with Tom Cruise’s ‘Mission: Impossible- Dead Reckoning Part One”, calling it a “flimsy action knock-off” and also said that the assemble of the star-studded cast, including ’50 Shades Of Grey’s” Jamie Dornan, failed to charm owing to a bad script that gave them little content to start with.
Giving it a meagre 2/5 stars, Indian Express wrote that Alia Bhatt’s talent had been wasted, as this was the Bollywood actor’s debut Hollywood project- pointing out how she was minimised when her talent could have been utilized better. Their review futher criticised the film’s poor dialogue and overuse of character’s talking in cliche’s like “You know what you signed up for”, and, “Behind you!” or the limited ways their roles were fleshed out throughout the film.
The SAG-AFTRA strike in Hollywood has reached its 21st day of protests against studios paying low residuals, poor working conditions as well as the use of A.I to replicate images of background actors. Studios like Warner Bros, Netflix and Disney have reportedly refused to negotiate with the union, with sources revealing the studios were planning to prolonge the protest till most of the actors become broke, according to ‘The Bear’ staff writer Alex O’Keefe.
In the midst of the protests, multiple A-list celebrities have come forward to offer donations to keep the movement going. Variety reports that some of the A-list celebrities who contributed to the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Emergency Financial Assistance Program were Meryl Streep, Dwyane Johnson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Amal and George Clooney and Oprah Winfrey.
“Thanks to the support of some of Hollywood’s top-earning stars, the Foundation is preparing to bring aid and hope to thousands of journeymen actors facing tremendous economic hardship,” the foundation said in a statement released a few days ago.
In a statement sent to the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers to end the strike and pay fair residuals to writers and actors, Meryl Streep recalled how she began her career working as a waitress and struggled to make ends meet:
“I remember my days as a waiter, cleaner, typist, even my time on the unemployment line,” Streep said in a statement. “In this strike action, I am lucky to be able to support those who will struggle in a long action to sustain against Goliath. We will stand strong together against these powerful corporations who are bent on taking the humanity, the human dignity, even the human out of our profession. I am proudest of my fellow actors who have immediately offered to fund the Emergency Financial Assistance Program.”
“We stand ready to get back to the table and make a fair deal with the AMPTP,” George Clooney said. “Until then, I’m proud to be able to support the SAG-AFTRA Foundation and my fellow actors who may be struggling in this historic moment. We’ve stood on the shoulders of the likes of Bette Davis and Jimmy Cagney and it’s time for our generation to give something back. I can’t thank Courtney enough for his determination in putting this effort together by shedding light on the human toll happening right now, and how we can work together to alleviate some of the pain and suffering.”
Among the recent stream of K-dramas that have arrived on Netflix, we highly recommend that you check out ‘See You In My 19th Life’. Based on the popular webtoon comic by the same name, the series follows Ban Ji Eum (played by Mr Queen’s Shin Hye Sun) as a woman who has a secret: she has had at least 19 past lives, remembering all of them even though she doesn’t know why and how it started. In her 18th life, she meets a young boy Moon Seo Ha (played by Yumi’s Cells Ahn Bo Hyun) when they are children, but her life is quickly cut off because of a horrifying car accident. Now reborn with a new face in her 19th life, Ji Eum is determined to trace down Seo Ha, and also meet others in her journey to understand her ability.
With its gorgeous story telling and moving performances of Hye Sun and Bo Hyun, we should give our followers a list of reasons why they must absolutely check out this drama.
1. Heart tugging and gorgeous story telling
The series really activates your tear ducts from the first episode when it touches upon themes like childhood abuse, trauma and loneliness, while exploring the lives of both Seo Ha and Ji Eum as they navigate dealing with adulthood while overcoming the abuses they suffered as children.
2. Perfect for all those who love Korean fantasy dramas, especially the mortal x immortal relationship
If you’re a fan of Korean fantasy dramas like ‘Goblin’, ‘The Legend Of The Blue Sea’ and ‘Doom At Your Service’, which all revolved around a relationship between an immortal being with magical powers who falls in love with a human being, then this is definately your kind of drama. The trope is reversed where this time, the woman is the one with magical powers, doing all in her power to make the mortal man, her long lost lover, come back to her and fix their torn relationship. With their undeniable chemistry and how they help each other heal from past wounds when they were tragically torn apart, will definitely keep you hooked to this drama.
3. Shin Hye Sun is captivating as a free-spirited and confident female lead
Hye Sun has outshined in several dramas in the past like Mr Queen but this is the drama where she proves that her talent is unmatchable. The female lead Ji Eum is a headstrong and fearless woman, whose many talents compel her to becoming a cash cow for her leecherous father, who keeps coming to her for money despite abandoning her. But most importantly, how Ji Eum connects and eventually consols the loved ones she had abandoned when she died in her past life, and how she unabashedly seeks to protect and heal Seo Ha, is what makes her a compelling female lead.
4. Ahn Bo Hyun moves audience with his heart tugging performance as the shy and lovable male protagonist.
Bo Hyun had previously played second leads in dramas like ‘Her Private Life’ and ‘Yumi’s Cells’ but it is with ‘See You In My 19th Life’ where he really makes the audience wail with how he plays Seo Ha. A troubled man who is dealing with the grief of losing his mother and later the love of his life, a disability that makes him the brunt of bullying by his father and step mother, it is how charming and versatile Bo Hyun is with the way he plays the character, and also how he matches the powerhouse Hye Shin, truly making this Netflix’s top rated Korean dramas.
