According to Nielsen Korea, the Korean drama "Jeongnyeon: The Star is Born" achieved a rating of 8.2% in its second episode, which aired on the evening of October 13. The rating of the drama has nearly doubled compared to episode 1, reaching 4.8%.
“Jeongnyeon: Rising Star” is adapted from a popular webtoon. Director Jung Ji In of the hit historical drama “Red Cuffs” is in charge of producing this work.
Set in the 1950s, the film follows Yoon Jeong Nyeon (Kim Tae Ri), a young musical prodigy who dreams of becoming a top traditional theater artist.
The drama explores Jeong Nyeon's journey through competition, teamwork, and personal growth amid a country in difficult times.
In addition to Kim Tae Ri, the cast includes Shin Ye Eun, Ra Mi Ran, Jung Eun Chae, Kim Yoon Hye...
“Jeongnyeon: Rising Star” has achieved impressive ratings despite the controversies that surrounded it before its premiere.
Last month, the Seoul Central District Court approved a request for provisional forfeiture filed by MBC against Studio N and Management mmm, the co-producers of “Jeongnyeon: Rising Star.”
MBC has accused the production company of “Jeongnyeon” of stealing its project and interfering in contract negotiations, claiming that Studio N and Management mmm violated the Unfair Competition Prevention Act.
“Jeongnyeon” was initially produced at MBC, with the broadcaster participating in the preliminary research, location scouting, and casting process for about a year.
During negotiations, MBC offered a production cost of 2 billion won per episode. But just before filming began, Studio N accepted another offer from tvN of 2.8 billion won per episode.
Then, when tvN took over production of “Jeongnyeon,” director Jung Ji In left MBC’s production team to move to tvN.
MBC demands that the production companies of the drama “Jeongnyeon” pay damages for illegal business practices.
However, the production company denied MBC's claim, saying that they had not received any payment from MBC and were forced to switch to tvN, due to delays in negotiations over production costs.
Additionally, the drama was mired in controversy when the character Buyong, a key character in the original webtoon, was removed from the adaptation. In the original, Buyong was Jeong Nyeon's biggest fan and played an essential role in the story revolving around women.
Regarding this issue, the producer explained that the character Buyong was eliminated due to fashion constraints, the film only has 12 episodes. This was agreed with the original author.
According to Allkpop, “Jeongnyeon: Rising Star” attracted attention as soon as the first two episodes aired thanks to Kim Tae Ri's impressive and delicate acting.
The actress once revealed that she practiced pansori (traditional Korean music) for 3 years to prepare for the role.
Kim Tae Ri's appearance as Jeong Nyeon is also praised for being very similar to the original.
