The 12 most anticipated web novel and webtoon K-drama adaptations coming soon

The upcoming webtoon K-drama adaptation of The Remarried Empress arrives on Disney+ in the second half of 2026. Based on the web novel by Alphatart—and later adapted into one of Naver’s most successful webtoons, with 2.6 billion views worldwide—audiences can expect high fantasy, swoon-worthy romance and gripping political intrigue. The story follows Navier, a beloved empress who shocks the nation when she agrees to marry the prince of a rival kingdom after her husband takes on a mistress and demands a divorce.

The Remarried Empress boasts a star-studded cast of Hallyu royalty led by Shin Min-a (Oh My Venus, Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha) as the capable Empress Navier of the Eastern Kingdom and Lee Jong-suk (While You Were Sleeping, W: Two Worlds Apart) as the gallant Prince Heinrey of the Western Kingdom.

Rounding out the high-profile ensemble of the fantasy romance K-drama is Ju Ji-hoon (Kingdom, Light House) as the flawed Emperor Sovieshu and Lee Se-young (The Red Sleeve, The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract) as the scheming runaway slave Rashta.

See more: 10 must-watch TV shows with Lee Jong Suk before the release of ‘The Remarried Empress’

Fans eager to see Bae Suzy (While You Were Sleeping, Start-Up) and Kim Seon-ho (Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, Can This Love Be Translated?) share the screen again are in for a treat when Disney+ releases Portraits of Delusion in the latter half of 2026. The upcoming webtoon K-drama adaptation of Delusion, the popular Naver webtoon written by Hongjacga, reunites the two six years after their unforgettable onscreen chemistry in Start-Up captured audiences worldwide.

The story, set in 1935 Gyeongseong, unfolds after Song Jeong-hwa, the reclusive owner of a mysterious hotel, commissions a portrait from Yoon I-ho, a struggling artist. Jeong-hwa hasn’t been seen in 50 years, so I-ho is stunned when she looks as if she hasn’t aged in all those years.

Bound by an agreement to stay locked in the hotel while he works on her portrait, I-ho’s fascination slowly turns into dread. The mystery deepens when he learns the fate of the other painters who came before him.

Helmed by Han Jae-rim, director of the award-winning films The King and The Face Reader, Portraits of Delusion is a vampire tale that delves into themes of grief, obsession, love, loneliness and loss. 

See more: From ‘Start-Up’ to ‘Can This Love Be Translated?’: 15 K-dramas and movies that made Kim Seon-ho a star

Netflix’s upcoming webtoon K-drama adaptation Love O’Clock is based on the popular webtoon An Hour of Romance, written and illustrated by Kim Myeong-mi—the same artist who did the artwork for What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim. It reunites Mr Queen on-screen pair Shin Hye-sun (The Art of Sarah, Welcome to Samdal-ri) and Na In-woo (Marry My Husband, River Where the Moon Rises), and also stars Lee Joo-woo (Stealer: The Treasure Keeper) and Yoon Kyun-sang (Clean With Passion For Now).

In this rom-com K-drama, Shin Hye-sun plays reality-show PD Cha Ju‑an, a workaholic who thrives on chaos, while Na In-woo is Yu Do‑jin, a pro tennis player who is disciplined to a fault. When the two mysteriously end up swapping bodies for an hour every day, their lives are turned upside down.

Directed by Kim Sang‑hyup (Extraordinary You, True Beauty) from a screenplay by Han Sul‑hee and Hong Bo‑hui (Business Proposal), the adaptation promises romance, laughter and lighthearted mayhem of two mismatched souls forced into each other's worlds.

Seo In-guk (Doom at Your Service, Boyfriend on Demand) and Park Ji-hyun (Flex x Cop, You and Everything Else) star in tvN’s See You at Work Tomorrow!, the webtoon K-drama adaptation of McQueen Studio’s Back to Work!

In this office rom-com, Park Ji-hyun’s Cha Ji-yoon is a single 30-something corporate worker who is capable and well-respected, but after seven years on the job, is completely burnt out. On top of that, she now has to deal with a new manager—Seo In-guk’s blunt and abrasive Kang Si-woo. But what Ji-yoon doesn’t realise is that Si-woo might just be what the doctor ordered to push her out of her slump.

From The Remarried Empress, Lee Jong-suk dives straight into another webtoon K-drama adaptation with Iseop’s Romance. Based on the popular web novel by Kim Eon-hee, he stars as Tae I-seop, the chaebol heir to the TK Group conglomerate. I-seop knows everything when it comes to business, but is totally clueless when it comes to love.

That changes when Kang Min-kyeong, a capable executive nicknamed TK Group’s “secret weapon”, is assigned as his secretary. Leaning into the enemies-to-lovers trope, I-seop and Min-kyeong’s constant bickering inevitably blooms into a workplace romance.

While there’s no news yet on who will be joining the Iseop’s Romance cast as Kang Min-kyeong, fans are buzzing about its ties to another upcoming Kim Eon-hee webtoon K-drama adaptation—A Casual Lie. Set in the same universe as Iseop’s Romance, fans are hoping A Casual Lie’s Lee Jun-hyuk will make a cameo in Iseop’s Romance and vice versa. That’s not a huge stretch considering the characters Lee Jong-suk and Lee Jun-hyuk play are cousins and succession rivals.

In the upcoming webtoon K-drama adaptation based on Kim Eon-hee’s web novel A Casual Lie, Lee Jun-hyuk (Love Scout, The Art of Sarah) stars as Tae Jun-seop, grandson to TK Group’s chairman and cousin to Tae I-seop (Lee Jong-suk) from Iseop’s Romance. But while the latter is a lighthearted workplace rom-com, A Casual Lie is a corporate romance that centres on chaebol heir politics and corporate espionage.

Cold and calculating, Jun-seop’s composed world crumbles when Yeon Woo-kyung enters the picture. But when questions on whether she’s the real deal or a spy planted by his rivals arise, they must work out what they truly want from one another.

There’s no word yet on who will be playing Yeon Woo-kyung in the webtoon K-drama adaptation, or how much involvement Lee Jong-suk will have in A Casual Lie as Jun-seop’s cousin and primary rival I-seop. The two dramas are reportedly being filmed simultaneously, so fans are hopeful that the overlaps will be significant.

After starring as the grieving vampire Song Jeong-hwa in the webtoon K-drama adaptation of Delusion, Bae Suzy is said to be considering the lead role in the upcoming live-action production of Men of the Harem, alongside Dex (Fresh Off the Sea, Single’s Inferno), Lee Soo-hyuk (S Line, Tomorrow) and Shin Seung-ho (Alchemy of Souls, D.P.).

The fantasy romance, based on a webtoon written by The Remarried Empress author Alphatart, tells the story of Empress Latil, who curates a reverse harem of powerful men—from a prince to a duke to the heirs of wealthy and influential families—in order to protect the Tarim Empire. 

As if the potential cast alone wasn’t enough to generate buzz, the series is being helmed by Lee Eung-bok—the visionary director behind some of K-drama's most beloved titles, including Goblin, Mr Sunshine and Descendants of the Sun.

Varo, Lee Chae-min’s agency, reveals that the actor is currently in talks to take on the male lead role of Cha Gyeol in the webtoon K-drama adaptation of My Reason to Die. Meanwhile, according to unconfirmed reports, Roh Yoon-seo has been offered the female lead role of Nam Ji-oh.

My Reason to Die, the smash-hit Naver webtoon written by Yuju, is a regression romance that follows the journey of Nam Ji-oh, an elite taekwondo athlete whose dreams of making the national team are dashed when she suffers a serious injury. While recuperating, she meets Cha Gyeol, an enigmatic boy, who, unbeknownst to Ji-oh, has been time-travelling from the future in the hopes of saving her from a tragic fate.

Should Lee Chae-min and Roh Yoon-seo sign on for the webtoon K-drama adaptation, it would not only bring together two Baeksang Awards winners—Lee Chae-min won Best New Actor for Bon Appétit, Your Majesty, while Roh Yoon-seo took home the Best New Actress trophy for Crash Course in Romance—it would also mark the Crash Course in Romance co-stars’ on-screen reunion.

Kim Sejong is no stranger to webtoon K-drama adaptations—the actress, best known for her role in Netflix sleeper hit Business Proposal, which is based on a popular webtoon, is in talks to lead the live-action adaptation of High School Queen. The role was reportedly initially offered to Shin Ye-eun (A Hundred Memories, The Glory), who passed on the project—paving the way for Kim Sejong’s potential casting.

Written by Critie, High School Queen revolves around Cheong-ha, a queen and skilled swordswoman from the Joseon period who reincarnates in the body of bullied high school student Park Da-jin in the present. With her personality and fighting skills, Cheong-ha seeks to take down Juwon High’s bullies and dismantle the system that lets the strong prey on the weak.

Song Kang, a veteran of webtoon K-drama adaptations—thanks to his work in Sweet Home, Navillera, Love Alarm and Nevertheless—is being eyed to play the lead in White Scandal alongside his Love Alarm co-star Kim So-hyun (River Where the Moon Rises, Good Boy), who is reportedly in talks to star as his love interest.

Originally a web novel written by Moon Chae-a, White Scandal was later adapted into webtoon format by HO and GetMean. The story follows Ji Eun-seol, a former child actress who has fallen from grace and Dan Yi-hyuk, a top celebrity who is set to inherit his family’s massive business conglomerate. In order to get what they each want, the two enter into a fake relationship contract. For Eun-seol, it’s a ticket out of poverty and back into the spotlight. For Yi-hyuk, it's a calculated move to keep his family at bay.

According to news outlets, Choi Woo-shik (Our Beloved, Parasite) and Moon Ga-young (True Beauty, Find Me in Your Memory) have been approached to take on the lead roles in the upcoming webtoon K-drama adaptation of the critically acclaimed Naver hit Whale Star: The Gyeongseong Mermaid. Written by Na Yoon-hee, it is a reinterpretation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid.

The webtoon—and the K-drama—transports the classic fairy tale to 1926 Gyeongseong, during the Japanese occupation. Choi Woo-shik is being tapped to play Kang Ui-hyeon, a well-educated man from a powerful family who is secretly involved in the independence movement. Moon Ga-young is in talks to play Heo Su-a, a servant in a wealthy pro-Japanese household, with a deep and abiding love of the sea.

Although there are echoes of Andersen’s work—including Su-a finding Ui-hyeon washed ashore and losing her ability to speak—Whale Star: The Gyeongseong Mermaid, winner of the Presidential Award at the 2021 Korea Content Awards, goes beyond the tragic romance. Set to be directed by Hur Jin-ho of The Last Princess and Happiness, fans can expect the adaptation to be a sweeping historical tale filled with deeply complex characters, political espionage and patriotism.

From vampire mysteries and reverse-harem fantasies to workplace romances, political intrigue and post-apocalyptic action, these are the upcoming webtoon K-dramas already generating major buzz among fans worldwide.

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