5 Highest-Budget K-Dramas, Ranked From Least to Most Expensive
Take a look at the numbers behind your favorite grand-scale sagas and fantasy worlds.
Korean dramas aren't just TV series – they are large-scale cinematic projects that rival Hollywood blockbusters in popularity and budget.
Huge investments are made in hiring top actors, building impressive sets, creating high-quality visual effects, and filming in exotic locations, making each project a true spectacle.
5. 'Queen of Tears', 2024
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Budget: $35M
IMDb Score: 8.2/10
Hong Hae-in comes from a wealthy family. Her boyfriend, Baek Hyun-woo, is a young lawyer with a modest income. Despite their different social statuses, they meet, fall in love, and marry.
However, their happiness is short-lived. Disagreements quickly arise, and the young couple gradually drifts apart. Everything changes when devastating news arrives: Hong Hae-in learns that she has a rare and aggressive form of cancer.
4. 'Arthdal Chronicles', 2019-2023
Budget: $45M
IMDb Score: 8.2/10
Eun-seom was born to bring misfortune to Arthdal. Several years later, the young man who left his homeland returns home.
Ta-gon is the strongest man in Arthdal and a hero who dreams of becoming the first king of these lands. Tan-ya is the heir to the Wahan tribe. Like Eun-seom, she was born with a curse and has endured much to find her destiny.
The artists labored for months to create a Bronze Age atmosphere. Every shot in Arthdal Chronicles, often compared to Game of Thrones, justifies its large budget.
3. 'Moving', 2023
Budget: $48M
IMDb Score: 8.4/10
The characters of the sci-fi action show Moving are people with supernatural abilities who worked for South Korea's National Intelligence Service.
After leaving the service, they started families and businesses and settled into quiet lives. However, it turns out that their superpowers are hereditary.
The series' $48 million budget is entirely due to the excellent CGI, which allowed the creators to deliver realistic and gripping action scenes.
2. 'Gyeongseong Creature', 2023-2024
Budget: $53M
IMDb Score: 7.4/10
The drama transports viewers to March 1945, the final months of Japan's colonial rule of Korea. Jang Tae-sang, a pawnshop owner, is blackmailed by the Gyeongseong police commissioner. He must find the pawnshop's mistress or lose his fortune.
Unable to find her with his own extensive connections, Jang Tae-sang resorts to enlisting the help of visiting detectives. Yoon Chae-ok has spent ten years searching for his missing mother and agrees to help a wealthy man in exchange for his help.
The lavish 1940s interiors, vintage cars, rickshaws, and old Gyeongseong attire all contribute to the drama's enormous budget.
1. 'Squid Game', 2021-2025
Budget: $90M
IMDb Score: 8.0/10
Squid Game is the series that introduced Netflix subscribers to the platform's extensive library of Asian content. The wildly successful survival drama became an entry point for those interested in South Korean culture.
Following the first season's stunning success, the project received a significant investment, allowing the sets to become even more captivating and the graphics more realistic.
