After launching several successful unscripted shows like Culinary Class Wars and Physical: 100 in the last two years, Netflix Korea has unveiled a lineup of returning unscripted formats as well as new series.
In October this year, one of the streamer’s most recognisable reality show formats will premiere with its regional spinoff, Physical: Asia.
Adapted from Physical: 100 (which has featured two Korean seasons so far), Physical: Asia will follow eight country teams competing against each other: Korea, Japan, Thailand, Mongolia, Türkiye, Indonesia, Australia and the Philippines. Among others, legendary boxing champion Manny Pacquiao is set to star in the show, leading Team Philippines.
Another familiar IP, Culinary Class Wars, will return for a second season in December this year. The cooking survival show made history as the first Korean unscripted series to top the streamer’s Global Top 10 Non-English TV list for three consecutive weeks upon its debut. The show stars Paik Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae.
Role-playing mystery game show Crime Scene Zero will premiere on September 23. Running for 10 episodes, each episode will feature a special guest engaging in mind games and battles of deduction. Stars include Jang Jin, Park Ji-yoon, Jang Dong-min, Kim Ji-hun, An Yujin, Park Sung-woong and Joo Hyun Young, among others.
Netflix teams up for the first time with veteran reality show producer Na Yeong-seok (2 Days 1 Night, New Journey to the West, Grandpas Over Flowers) to launch Three Idiots in Kenya. The series stars Lee Su-geun, Eun Ji-won, and Kyuhyun as they embark on a comedic and unpredictable journey across Kenya.
Na will also produce another Netflix show, Ready or Not: Texas, with frequent collaborator Lee Seo-jin and some of Lee’s friends. The crew will travel through Dallas, Texas, which is Seo-jin’s dream destination for life after retirement, showcasing an array of American culture.
Season 5 of dating show Single’s Inferno will also debut in January 2026, with the second season of Better Late Than Single also premiering next year.
Next year will also see two “guesthouse” variety shows, with Kian’s Bizarre B&B Season 2 and Yoo Jae-suk’s B&B Rules!. The latter will be hosted by household name Yu Jae-seok, who steps into a new role as a guesthouse owner for the first time in his 34-year entertainment career. Netflix added that the response to Yoo’s new series has been overwhelming, with over 55,000 teams applying to be a guest and about 3,500 people interviewing for the show.
In February, Agents of Mystery will return for a second season. Directed by Jung Jong-yeon (The Great Escape, The Genius), the show follows a team as they investigate and solve unexpected incidents that cannot be explained scientifically. The series stars Lee Yong-jin, John Park, Lee Hyeri, Kim Do-hoon, Karina and Gabee.
The streamer also shared that Jung has also begun production on Season 3 of The Devil’s Plan.