Park Jihoon Power: New K-Drama Role Revealed

Actor Park Ji-hoon, who rose to box office success with the film 'The King and the Man', is aiming for consecutive hits with his next drama, '​Legendary Cook Soldier'. Despite being a TVING original, this production breaks the usual OTT pre-release format by being simultaneously scheduled on a TV channel (tvN). This is analyzed as a strategy to leverage Park Ji-hoon's recent high popularity.

'Legendary Cook Soldier' will be simultaneously released on tvN and TVING every Monday and Tuesday at 8:50 PM, starting May 11th. Unlike typical TVING originals, which are usually released on OTT first to attract new subscribers before being scheduled on TV, this move is interpreted as an intention to maximize the content's reach. While OTT pre-release was advantageous for subscriber acquisition, it had limitations in expanding public recognition and sometimes caused spoiler issues for TV viewers.

Conversely, simultaneous scheduling has the advantage of simultaneously targeting the middle-aged and older demographic who enjoy watching live TV broadcasts, as well as the younger generation familiar with OTT usage. This breaks down platform boundaries, allowing for immediate buzz both online and offline right after the broadcast. Although there are concerns that it might reduce the incentive to subscribe to OTT services, it appears to be a choice that places more weight on the drama's mainstream success. Specifically, it is a strategy to maximize influence by leveraging the immense popularity of Park Ji-hoon, who proved his acting skills and box office appeal in 'The King and the Man', attracting the younger generation, including his fandom, to TVING, and the middle-aged and older demographic to tvN.

The drama itself also possesses competitive strength. 'Legendary Cook Soldier' is a military cooking fantasy drama depicting the journey of Private Kang Sung-jae (played by Park Ji-hoon), who wields a kitchen knife instead of a gun, as he becomes a legendary cook. It is based on a popular web novel of the same name and has been recognized for its quality, selected as a special screening in the non-competitive section at the French 'Series Mania' festival. In addition to lead actor Park Ji-hoon, veteran actors such as Yoon Kyung-ho, Han Dong-hee, and Lee Hong-nae are also appearing. Park Ji-hoon is set to portray a soldier struggling for survival and cooking, a stark contrast to his previous role. The fresh genre, combining military stories with the fun of 'cookbang' (cooking broadcasts), is also a distinct point of interest.

TVING has adopted a strategy to break down platform boundaries and broaden its reach to the public. Given that the military theme appeals to all age groups, it remains to be seen whether this gamble of simultaneous scheduling will successfully capture both viewership ratings and buzz.