Will Choi Soo-jong Save KBS With "Korea-Khitan War"?

Expectations for Choi Soo-jong's return to KBS are higher than ever.

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KBS 2TV's new Korean historical drama "Korea-Khitan War" (written by Lee Jeong-woo-III, directed by Jeon Woo-seong and Kim Han-sol, produced by Monster Union and Viv Studios) will premiere at 9:25 PM on November 11th.

"Korea-Khitan War" tells the story of Hyeonjong (Kim Dong-jun), the emperor of Goryeo, who brought Goryeo together with tolerance leadership and led the war against the Kitan to victory, and Gang Gam-chan (Choi Soo-jong), his political teacher and commander-in-chief of the Goryeo Army.

"Korea-Khitan War" is a work that attracted a lot of attention from viewers before the first broadcast. Choi Soo-jong, the 'King of historical dramas', was cast as the main character early on. On top of that, Choi Soo-jong drew attention when he confirmed his appearance in a historical drama for the first time in 10 years. He led the heyday of KBS's epic dramas, including "Dae Jo Yeong", "Emperor of The Sea", and "The Great King's Dream".

It is Choi Soo-jong's first epic comeback in 10 years, "Korea-Khitan War" is emerging as a ray of hope during the slump in the ratings of KBS dramas in 2023.

In addition to the KBS historical drama, Choi Soo-jong starred in the KBS weekend drama "My Only One", which ended in March 2019. He led "My Only One" with UEE and Lee Jang-woo. It was a box office hit, with viewership close to 50%. Its highest viewer rating of 49.4% (102nd/Nielsen Korea). Hereinafter, the same standard). KBS weekend dramas have not exceeded 40% of viewership until September 2023 since "My Only One". UEE, who worked with Choi Soo-jong, made a comeback in the weekend drama with "Live Your Own Life", but the viewership rate at the beginning of the drama is struggling with the late 10% range.

As a result, expectations are high for Choi Soo-jong, who is returning with "Korea-Khitan War". Choi Soo-jong is an actor who is trusted and watched on the small screen. He has already proven himself to be a 'historical powerhouse' to the extent that even the words 'historical drama = Choi Soo-jong' have been said through various historical dramas.

In the behind-the-scenes video of the biggest epic drama "Korea-Khitan War" which was released prior to the broadcast, he predicted that he would show another aspect of General Gang Gam-chan from what the public knows. Regarding his role of Gang Gam-chan in the video, he said, "Often, General Gang Gam-chan has a strong image of a general, so he may seem distant, but I think we will be able to see a lot different from what we thought through this drama while reading other articles about General Gang Gam-chan".

To the public, Gang Gam-chan is recognized as a general who led the Battle of Guiju and as a 'Goryeo Hero' than Emperor Hyunjong of Goryeo at the time. Attention is focused on how Choi Soo-jong will portray Gang Gam-chan. Choi Soo-jong showed the charismatic Gang Gam-chan in the released teaser video.

KBS drama, which is facing difficulties due to the sluggish ratings in 2023. Choi Soo-jong, who will lead KBS's historical drama, is coming. Choi Soo-jong, the 'king of historical dramas', is raising viewers' expectations on whether he will give a "Victory" to KBS's historical drama, which has lost consecutive games ahead of the "Korea-Khitan War".