The film Gunche is flexing its presence beyond Korea, sweeping No. 1 in opening box office across major Asian markets. However, while it’s lagging behind overseas titles on global OTT film charts, K-dramas are surging to fill that void, gripping viewers worldwide.
First up, Ahn Hyo-seop—who built a strong global fandom with the Netflix animated film K-Pop: Demon Hunters—wrapped his drama Sold Out on You on a high note thanks to an enthusiastic viewer response.
On top of that, Heo Nam-jun and Lim Ji-yeon’s drama Brave New World, praised for its rigorous historical detail and addictive reincarnation arc, is riding a ratings hot streak—once again proving the overwhelming power of K-content.
According to the global OTT ranking site FlixPatrol on the 1st, the film chart’s No. 1 remains Ladies First, holding its crown from last week. No. 2 also stayed unchanged with the animated film Swapped, confirming its long-running dominance at the top.
Debuting at No. 3 is the 2009 release A Perfect Getaway. Set against a dreamy honeymoon backdrop turned nightmare by a brutal murder, this chilling thriller is the perfect antidote to the early heat—sparking a surprise resurgence as global viewers push it back up the charts.
On the TV shows chart, K-dramas landed side by side. SBS’s buzzy Fri–Sat series Brave New World ranked No. 4, while the Wed–Thu drama Sold Out on You placed No. 10.
Brave New World is especially on fire. In Episode 8, which aired on the 30th, Shin Se-ri (played by Lim Ji-yeon) finally opens up to Cha Se-gye (Heo Nam-jun), kicking off an undeniable flirtation and filling living rooms with sweet anticipation. In the ending, Se-gye begins suspecting that Kang Dan-sim (also played by Lim Ji-yeon), the woman who appears in his dreams, might be the same person as Se-ri—heightening curiosity about how their tightly interwoven bond across past and present lives will unfold.
Fueled by the explosive plot, ratings are skyrocketing. Episode 8 of Brave New World hit 10.7% in the Seoul metro area and 10.4% nationwide, per Nielsen Korea, with a peak of 13.7%—once again breaking its own record. That’s a commanding No. 1 among all miniseries and programs in its time slot for the week. In the key 20–49 demo, it averaged 4% and peaked at 5.1%, signaling an unstoppable run.
Meanwhile, Sold Out on You, which premiered on April 22 and ended on the 28th of last month, bowed out with underwhelming numbers. Despite giving Matthew Lee (Ahn Hyo-seop) and Dam Ye-jin (Chae Won-bin) a tidy happy ending where they secure both career and love, the finale only managed a 2.7% nationwide rating, according to Nielsen Korea on the 29th.
Right after the broadcast, viewers flooded online communities with mixed reactions like "The running scenes felt a bit awkward," "The vocal tone was too flat, which was disappointing," "The kiss scene direction was really good," and "It was a warm, healing drama without cheap shocks until the very end."