Leading entertainment company CJ ENM’s K-Dramas have flourished in 2025 by successfully enticing global fans with catchy stories filled with creativity and workmanship
Ruminating on all the groundbreaking accomplishments achieved this year, here is the list of CJ ENM K-dramas that global fans must watch:
“Bon Appétit, Your Majesty”
- Premiere: Aug 23, 2025
- Genre: Fantasy, Romance
- Cast: Lim Yoon-a, Lee Chae-min
This time-slip romantic comedy follows the story of Yeon Ji-young, an award-winning French chef, who becomes the royal chef of Yeonhuigun, the worst tyrant and demanding gourmet, after traveling back 500 years in time with the mysterious ancient cookbook, “Mangun-rok.”
Becoming his royal chef, Ji-young tries her best to survive each day by serving delightful cuisine for Yeonhuigun. If she fails, she will be executed.
Produced by Korea’s leading scripted TV studio, Studio Dragon, “Bon Appétit, Your Majesty” has become the first ever TV series to rank first in Netflix’s Global Chart (Non-English) for two weeks running, while staying in the chart for 10 consecutive weeks.
The show also reached 100 million viewing hours just after its third week of airing and achieved 300 million viewing hours after its sixth week of airing.
According to Flixpatrol, “Bon Appétit, Your Majesty” has become the first-ever non-original K-Drama on Netflix to top the global TV show category for two days in a row.
In Korea, the show has been named as the title with the highest viewership among CJ ENM’s TV series in 2025, with its final episode reaching an average household viewership of 17.1% (peak: 19.4%).
“Shin’s Project”
- Premiere: Sep 15, 2025
- Genre: Comedy, Drama
- Cast: Han Suk-kyu, Bae Hyeon-seong, Lee Re
Mr. Shin may look like an ordinary chicken shop owner, but he’s the kind of person who appears just in time—when tempers flare, fists are about to fly, and chaos looms — to cool things down with one sharp, satisfying line that settles everything.
When Pillip, a by-the-book rookie judge, is suddenly reassigned to the chicken shop instead of a courtroom, and Sion, a delivery rider secretly working as Mr. Shin’s informant, joins the team, the unlikely trio begins to chase the truth and seek new ground for justice.
Everything seems to be running smoothly — but one question remains: Who exactly is Mr. Shin?
This comedy drama, starring veteran actor “Han Suk-kyu,” ranked in the TOP 10 on the Japanese streaming platform, U-NEXT, and first on friDay TV, the largest streaming platform in Taiwan.
“Shin’s Project” also ranked in the TOP 20 on the leading pan-regional OTT video streaming service, Viu, while entering second place on the Thai streamer, TrueVisions.
Locally, the show has reached the highest average household viewership of 9.1%, topping tvN’s Monday-Tuesday time slot viewership in 2025.
“Typhoon Family”
- Premiere: Oct 11, 2025
- Genre: Family, Drama
- Cast: Lee Jun-ho, Kim Min-ha
“Typhoon Family” follows a generation of youth navigating the turbulent waters of South Korea’s 1997 financial crisis.
As they face unexpected challenges and harsh realities, these young adults are forced to grow up fast, confronting loss, responsibility and the fight for survival.
The series captures their struggles and transformations, embodying a spirit of resilience and hope amid uncertainty and change.
This heartwarming family drama, filled with a star-studded cast and emotional stories, strongly grasped global fans’ attention, which led it to enter the TOP 10 on Netflix’s Global TV show chart (Non-English) for four weeks.
“Nice to Not Meet You”
- Premiere: Nov 03, 2025
- Genre: Comedy, Romance
- Cast: Lee Jung-jae, Lim Ji-yeon
“Nice to Not Meet You” deals with the love-and-hate warfare story between Lim Hyeon-jun, a top-notch actor fed up with starring in the same show for years, and a political journalist, Wi Jeong-sin, who lands in the entertainment industry with no background knowledge but full of bravery.
As they encounter and overcome several hardships together, the unexpected emotions between them begin to bloom, making their world turn upside down.
“Nice to Not Meet You,” starring globally renowned actor Lee Jung-jae and Lim Ji-yeon, known for her strong and dynamic presence, soared into the TOP 5 on Prime Video’s global TV show category, according to Flixpatrol.
The show’s local performance has also been solid. Based on Nielsen Korea, the very first episode of “Nice to Not Meet You” ranked in first place among the Monday-Tuesday time slot TV series (nationwide household average: 5.5% / peak: 6.5%), drawing a massive amount of attention from the public.
“Dear X”
- Premiere: Nov 06, 2025
- Genre: Romance, Thriller
- Cast: Kim You-jung, Kim Young-dae, Kim Do-hun, Lee Yul-eum
Behind a beautiful face hides a cruel nature — Baek Ah Jin, who sees through and manipulates others’ hearts.
After stepping on the sacrifices of many to reach the top, everything begins to change the moment she arrives there.
A woman wearing a mask to escape hell and climb to the highest place. And the story of the Xs being brutally crushed by her.
With multiple twists and impeccable performances by the actors, “Dear X,” leading K-content streaming platform TVING’s original title, concluded with fascinating results globally.
On the global streaming platform Rakuten Viki, the show was named the No. 1 weekly title across the Americas, Europe, and Oceania, while reaching No. 1 on Disney+ Japan and on STARZPLAY in parts of the MENA region, according to Flixpatrol.
On HBO Max, the show is one of the top-performing Asian titles to be streamed on the platform in 17 countries and regions in Asia-Pacific, including Southeast Asia, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
“Pro Bono”
- Premiere: Dec 06, 2025
- Genre: Legal, Drama
- Cast: Jung Kyung-ho, So Ju-yeon
Kang David is a highly successful judge, and while he succeeds thanks to his efficiency and quick thinking, his major flaw of being obsessed with materialism and success draws him down.
One day, an unexpected crisis lands, taking Kang David away from the “bench” and making him join a top law firm’s pro bono team, where hope and purpose wait in humble and unexpected places.
Airing on No. 1 K-content channel, tvN, the show successfully continued the craze provoked by its previous titles (“Bon Appétit, Your Majesty,” “Typhoon Family”), reaching the TOP 7 on Netflix’s Global TV show chart (Non-English).
The final episode of “Pro Bono” reached an average household viewership of 10%, ending on a high note with positive feedback from viewers, especially regarding the show’s heartwarming storyline.
The show is available for streaming on Netflix.
As a global IP powerhouse, CJ ENM’s 2026 K-dramas are already enthralling international viewers with diverse genres and an outstanding cast.
“Spring Fever” — a romantic comedy drama starring Ahn Bo-hyun and Lee Joo-been, premiered on January 5th, bringing heart-throbbing romance between two very different characters. The show is currently available to stream globally on Prime Video.
“Undercover Miss Hong” — a crime-genre series following the story of an elite undercover agent who goes undercover as a 20-year-old rookie employee inside a suspicious securities firm — is also receiving a huge amount of attention, as Park Shin-hye returns after her 2-year hiatus. The show is set to premiere on January 17. The series will be available on Netflix for international fans.
“Our Universe” — starring Bae In-hyuk and Roh Jeong-eui, is a romantic comedy series about two in-laws (Hyun-jin and Tae-hyung) taking care of their nephew Woo-joo (meaning “universe” in Korean), who was left orphaned after a tragic accident.
Thrown into unfamiliar roles as co-parents, the story of these two different, imperfect adults, struggling not only with childcare but also with their lives and love, will first air on February 4.
