CJ ENM’s drama Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born a series that reportedly cost a total of 33.6 billion won, with about 2.8 billion won per episode has been selected as one of the top programs of 2025 by the Korea Media and Communications Commission.
Despite sparking controversy over budget pressures and high actor fees triggered by rising talent costs in the Netflix era, Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born became one of CJ ENM’s most successful titles.
On December 12, the Commission held its annual award ceremony at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul’s Jung District and announced Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born as the Grand Prize (Daesang) recipient among 2025 broadcast programs.
A Studio Dragon production that aired on tvN from October to November last year, Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born is adapted from a popular webtoon. The drama reimagines traditional Korean gukgeuk through a modern lens, following the story of a gifted singer striving to become the best gukgeuk performer. Its themes of competition, cooperation, and personal growth resonated widely with audiences.
The series came at a time when actor fees were soaring some reportedly reaching 500–800 million won per episode for top stars due to a market shift sparked by global streaming demand. Reports suggested that lead actors on Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born drew between 200–300 million won per episode, which fueled debate about excessive industry costs.
However, Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born overcame these criticisms to become a major talking point that outperformed even several Netflix originals in terms of buzz and viewership.
The series premiered with a 4.8% national viewership rating and consistently broke its own records throughout its run. It ultimately surpassed the “15% barrier,” ending with an average 16.5% nationwide rating and a peak of 18.8%, ranking first in its timeslot across all channels including free‑to‑air networks.
The drama also drew global attention, topping Disney+ TV show charts in Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and gaining significant interest in Japan.
In addition to Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born winning the Grand Prize at the ceremony, the Excellence Award went to KBS’s documentary Glaciers, which explores 4.5 billion years of Earth’s history through the lens of glaciers. The program was praised for expanding public understanding of climate change through scientific, ecological, and social perspectives.
Nine other works including SBS’s SBS Special – Hakjeon and Kim Min‑gi Behind the Scenes received Outstanding Program Awards, highlighting a strong year in Korean broadcasting.
Sources: Daum