The Scandal: Netflix's Steamy New K-Drama With Son Ye-jin & Ji Chang-wook Drops September 18

The Scandal: Everything to Know About Netflix's Steamy Joseon-Era K-Drama

Mark your calendars, K-drama fans. Netflix is dropping its most seductive Korean original of the fall on September 18, 2026, and it stars two of the biggest names in the industry. The Scandal pairs Crash Landing on You icon Son Ye-jin with Healer heartthrob Ji Chang-wook in a dangerous game of love, lust, and deception set in Joseon-era Korea. If that casting combo doesn't already have you hooked, keep reading.

What Is The Scandal About?

The Scandal (Korean title: Seukaendeul) is an 8-episode period romance that reimagines the classic French novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses through a Joseon-dynasty lens. Son Ye-jin plays Lady Cho, a brilliant noblewoman whose cunning far exceeds the confines of the women's quarters. Ji Chang-wook plays Cho Won, the greatest playboy of Joseon. The two enter a high-stakes wager involving the seduction of young widow Hui Yeon, played by singer-turned-actress NANA (Mask Girl, Good Partner).

What starts as a cruel game of deceit spirals into genuine obsession, betrayal, and heartbreak. Fans of Queen of Tears, Alchemy of Souls, and the film Untold Scandal (2003) will feel right at home — this is prestige sageuk with a seductive edge.

• Premiere date: September 18, 2026 — all 8 episodes drop at once
• Where to watch: Exclusively on Netflix, globally
• Genre: Period romance / melodrama / sageuk
• Episodes: 8

Why This Cast Is a Big Deal

Let's talk about the leads, because Netflix clearly opened its wallet for this one. Son Ye-jin needs no introduction — the Crash Landing on You and Thirty-Nine star is returning to period drama for the first time in years, and her transformation into the scheming Lady Cho is already generating massive buzz in Korea. Opposite her, Ji Chang-wook (The Worst of Evil, Welcome to Samdal-ri) sheds his modern rom-com image for the role of Joseon's most notorious rake.

And don't sleep on NANA. After scene-stealing turns in Mask Girl and My Man Is Cupid, her role as the innocent widow caught in the leads' web could be her true breakout moment. The chemistry triangle between these three is the entire engine of the show — and early stills suggest sparks will fly.

Beyond the leads, September 2026 is stacked for K-drama lovers. Disney+ counters with Hyun Bin and Jung Woo Sung in Made in Korea Season 2, tvN offers the lottery office comedy The Ordinary Jackpot starring Lee Jun Hyuk, and KBS2 delivers the realistic 10-year-couple romance A Love Other Than Yours with Seo Kang Jun and Ahn Eun Jin. But none of them have the global Netflix machine behind them quite like The Scandal does.

Final Verdict: Should You Watch?

Absolutely — especially if you love slow-burn romance with actual stakes. An all-at-once 8-episode drop means perfect weekend binge material, and the Son Ye-jin plus Ji Chang-wook pairing is the kind of once-in-a-decade casting that K-drama fans will talk about for years. Period aesthetics, a twisted love triangle, and Netflix-level production values? That's a recipe for the next Squid Game-scale watercooler moment in the K-drama world — or at least the next Queen of Tears.

Set your reminders for September 18 on Netflix. The game of seduction begins then.