Sarandos Joins Seoul Fan Event for Netflix's 10 Years in Korea
The co-CEO previewed upcoming Korean titles at a two-day festival that drew more than 10,000 fans, days after Netflix announced layoffs.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos flew to Seoul over the weekend to mark ten years of the streamer's Korean business. The trip came days after Netflix replaced chief content officer Bela Bajaria with Peter Rice and announced layoffs affecting roughly 1,000 employees.
He appeared at "Netflix Janchi," a two-day fan event held at Sangam Oil Tank Culture Park, a former petroleum storage depot in western Seoul that has been turned into a cultural complex. More than 10,000 local fans came, and online broadcasts of the event added 3.58 million cumulative views.
"Ten years ago, we dreamed big, but none of us could have imagined that Korean stories would move hearts around the world, and land right at the center of global culture," Sarandos said on stage on Saturday. "For Netflix, Korea is more than a market."
What the numbers show
Netflix released viewing data for the occasion. Korean programming is now its most-watched non-English-language category, and more than 80 percent of members worldwide have watched at least one Korean title. More than 200 Korean titles have appeared in the global Top 10 since the company began tracking it in June 2021.
The three seasons of Squid Game hold the top three places on the all-time most-watched non-English TV list, and this year's Teach You a Lesson recently reached No. 10. Korean productions generated more than 12 billion viewing hours between April 2025 and March 2026, second only to American content by country of origin.
Squid Game stars Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-hun and Park Hae-soo took the stage to look back on the show's global success. Ahn Hyo-seop, a voice star of KPop Demon Hunters, also appeared, as did D.P. stars Koo Kyo-hwan and Jung Hae-in and cast members from Hellbound, Mask Girl, Culinary Class Wars and The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call.
The slate ahead
Sarandos previewed the upcoming Korean lineup. Lee Chang-dong's Possible Love, which won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at Venice, arrives globally on Nov. 6, with Jeon Do-yeon, Sul Kyung-gu, Zo In-sung and Cho Yeo-jeong on hand. Tantara, a period drama set in the Korean entertainment industry of the 1960s to 1980s, premieres Dec. 11 and was introduced by Song Hye-kyo, Gong Yoo and Kim Seol-hyun.
He also pointed to Grand Galaxy Hotel, She, Wolf, a second season of All of Us Are Dead and the live-action Solo Leveling, in which Byeon Woo-seok plays Sung Jin-woo. Release dates for those four have not been announced.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter