The historical comedy The King’s Affection has made history as the first Korean-language series to win an International Emmy Award. Here’s all about it.
Spanning over 20 episodes – Yeonmo, or The King’s Affection – tells the tale of a princess posing to be the Crown Prince after her fraternal twin is killed in childhood. Starring Park Eun-bin of the Extraordinary Attorney Woo fame and K-pop group SF9’s lead vocalist Rowoon – the show caught the attention of viewers and critics alike for its fun, engaging storyline. It, hence, came as no surprise to many when the drama won the honor of the best telenovela at the 50th edition of the annual International Emmy Awards.
The King’s Affection is set in the Joseon period
The story goes that the crown prince’s wife gives birth to fraternal twins in an era where they were considered an ominous sign. When the daughter is set to be killed, the mother begs for her life to be spared, secretly sending her away from the palace. Years later, however, the son dies as well – leaving the throne vulnerable. The daughter is then called upon to take his place, albeit while posing as the crown prince herself.
Afraid of her identity being revealed, she struggles to trust almost anyone – choosing to be taciturn and emotionally distant instead. Enter Jung Ji Woon, a nobleman tutor who also happens to be handsome, intelligent, and an optimist. Things unfold as she finds herself drawn to him. Within Korea, the drama was hailed for its storytelling style, winning big at the Seoul International Drama Awards and the Korea Broadcasting Awards.
The International Emmy for Telenovela goes to “Yeonmo [The King’s Affection]” produced by KBS / Arc Media / Monster Union / Netflix! #SouthKorea #iemmyWIN pic.twitter.com/NGQt9gexiM
— International Emmy Awards (@iemmys) November 22, 2022
Expressing his joy at receiving the best telenovela title from The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Lee Geon Joon, the head of KBS Drama Center, was quoted by The Hindu as saying, “It’s a pleasure to have the potential of Korean dramas as a whole receive recognition. I feel an immense sense of responsibility during this time when K-content is receiving so much love around the world.” He further added, “We will do our best so that KBS dramas can play a large role in maintaining the potential of Korean (entertainment) content.”
Other nominees in the category were You Are My Hero (China), Nos Tempos do Imperador (Brazil), and Two Lives (Spain). For his role in the series, actor Lee Sun-kyun of Parasite fame was also nominated in the category of the best performance by an actor at the awards. Each year, leading television producers spotlight their programming at the International Emmy Awards, hoping to compete with the creme-de-la-creme of the industry. The event marks the convergence of nearly 1,000 international broadcasting, production, and distribution executives.
Watch the drama on Netflix here.
All images: Courtesy Netflix/KBS
This story first appeared on Lifestyle Asia India
