APOS: Netflix's Korean Content Head on What Comes After ‘Squid Game'

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3 days ago

There was a valedictory undercurrent to Netflix VP Don Kang's keynote appearance Wednesday at the APOS media and entertainment summit in Bali, Indonesia. The streamer's head of Korean content arrived armed with third-party research underscoring the company's instrumental role in fueling the global K-content boom — and he spoke just days ahead of the launch of Squid Game Season 3, the final installment in what remains Netflix's most-watched series of all time.
'We're all very excited about the Squid Game launch on Friday,' Kang said. 'And I'm very confident about the health and the growth of Korean content,' he added.
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In past years, Netflix founders Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos have used the APOS keynote stage to outline the company's Asia strategy. But this year, it was Kang who received top billing — yet another marker of how far both Netflix and Korean content have come in the last decade.
If there was a second subtext to Kang's talk, it was more reflective: where does Netflix's K-content journey go from here? Will Squid Game's astonishing success — with over 600 million global views over it first two seasons — come to be seen as the peak of Korea's pop culture export wave? Or is it just the beginning of a steady stream of Korean smash-hits that will be regarded as must-watch by vast swaths of the whole world?
Kang offered no hints or answers to speculation in the industry about Netflix's expected spinoff plans for the Squid Game franchise, but he struck a bullish tone on the future of K-content. He emphasized that Netflix doesn't view the genre as a global fad.
'For most people outside the APAC region, Squid Game was the first Korean show that they really watched, but ever since then more than 80 percent of our Netflix members have continued to watch Korean content,' he added. Kang pointed to independent research commissioned by Netflix, released Wednesday, showing that subscribers are nearly twice as likely as non-subscribers — 63 percent versus 36 percent — to express interest in watching Korean content going forward.
Kang said Netflix has 15 more Korean originals coming just in the second half of 2025. He highlighted a few of his personal favorites on the slate, including the action film Good News, directed by Byun Sung-Hyun (The Merciless, Kill Boksoon), and the much-anticipated romantic drama series, Genie, Make a Wish, created by Kim Eun-sook, the hitmaker behind The Glory and Mr. Sunshine. Kang also spotlighted the returning seasons of Neflix's reality competition series Culinary Class Wars and Physical: Asia.
'We were previously more focused on Korean series, but now we have really expanded into non-fiction shows,' Kang said. 'This expansion of genres allows us to both please the audience that already loves Korean content, and also to meet new audiences.'
Netflix's latest research report, How K-Content is Shaping Global Perceptions of Korea, was conducted via a third-party survey of over 11,500 people worldwide. The findings underscored the staying power of the Korean wave: in the U.S., 78 percent of K-content viewers said they had been watching for more than two years, while 23 percent had been tuning in for over five years.
K-dramas topped the list of genres favored by international viewers, with 60 percent identifying it as their preferred style, followed by romance (54 percent), and action and comedy (43 percent each).
The data also emphasized Korea's growing soft power. K-content viewers were found to be twice as likely as non-viewers to want to visit South Korea. Among Netflix subscribers, interest in Korean culture was also twice as high compared to the general population.
Squid Game season three launches globally on Friday. Season one still ranks as Netflix's most popular show ever, while Season two set a record late last year for the most views of a series or film on Netflix in its premiere week, eventually rising to become the streamer's third most popular show of all time.
Netflix is pulling out all the stops to send off the franchise. On Saturday, a massive Squid Game parade — co-hosted with the Seoul Metropolitan Government — will take over central Seoul. Beginning at the city's historic Gwanghwamun landmark and ending at Seoul Plaza, the event will feature appearances from stars Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-hun, Yim Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul and Wi Ha-jun, as well as creator Hwang Dong-hyuk. Netflix has described the parade as the most ambitious fan event it has ever staged.
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