General Information

• International Title: The King’s Affection
• Original Title: 연모 (romanization: Yeonmo)
• Genre: Period, Romance
• No. of Episode: 20
• Airing Date: 2021.10.11 ~ 2021.12.14
• Airing Slot: Monday – Tuesday
• Broadcasting Channel: KBS2
• International Distributor: Netflix
• Starring: Park Eun Bin, Rowoon, Nam Yoon Su, Choi Byungchan, Bae Yoon Kyung, Jung Chae Yeon
• Director: Song Hyun Wook, Lee Hyun Suk
• Screenwriter: Han Hee Jung
• Highest Rating: 12.1% Nationwide (Nielsen Korea)
• Awards: 2021 KBS Drama Awards (Best Couple Award – Park Eun Bin & Rowoon; Best New Actor – Rowoon; Best Young Actress – Choi Myung Bin; Popularity Award, Actor – Rowoon; Popularity Award, Actress – Park Eun Bin; Top Excellence Award, Actress – Park Eun Bin), 2021 Korea First Brand Awards (Female Acting Idol – Jung Chae Yeon)

Synopsis

The fictional Joseon era drama tells the story of Lee Hwi (Park Eun Bin), a disguised female crown prince. The story begins when Crown Princess gave birth to twins, which was considered a bad omen during the Joseon era. The royal family decides to execute the female twin, but Crown Princess tries to save her daughter by hiding her out of the palace.

Unfortunately, the male twin Lee Hwi died from a disease. Crown Princess brings back her daughter and raises her as a boy in place of Lee Hwi, the Crown Prince. Things start to get messy after Lee Hwi falls in love with his tutor, Jung Ji Woon (Rowoon).

Cast

Character: Lee Hwi
Portrayed by: Park Eun Bin
Park Eun Bin’s notable works: The Ghost Detective (2018), Hot Stove League (2019-2020), Do You Like Brahms? (2020)

Character: Jung Ji Woon
Portrayed by: Rowoon
Rowoon’s notable works: Where Stars Land (2018), Extraordinary You (2019), She Would Never Know (2021)

Character: Lee Hyun
Portrayed by: Nam Yoon Su
Nam Yoon Su’s notable works: Extracurricular (2020), Birthcare Center (2020), Beyond Evil (2021)

Character: Kim Ga On
Portrayed by: Choi Byungchan
Choi Byungchan’s notable works: Live On (2020)

Character: Shin So Eun
Portrayed by: Bae Yoon Kyung
Bae Yoon Kyung’s notable works: Doctor Prisoner (2019), Hi Bye, Mama! (2020), Undercover (2021)

Character: Noh Ha Kyung
Portrayed by: Jung Chae Yeon
Jung Chae Yeon’s notable works: To. Jenny (2018), My First Love (2019)

Extended Cast

Lee Pil Mo as Ye Jong
Bae Soo Bin as Jung Seok Jo
Kim Taek as Prince Won San
Kim In Kwon as Yang Moon Soo
Choi Myung Bin as Young Lee Hwi
Park Eun Hye as Mrs. Kim
Jang Se Hyun as Ji Geum
Kim Seo Ha as Prince Chang Woon
Lee Il Hwa as Great Queen Dowager
Ko Woo Rim as Young Jung Ji Woon
Sung Nam as Prince Chang Cheon
Baek Hyun Joo as Kim Sang Gung
No Sang Bo as Park Beom Doo
Son Yeo Eun as Queen
Son Jong Hak as Chief State Counselor
Kim Gun as Young Eunuch Hong

Cameo & Special Appearance

Han Chae Ah as Queen Jang Sun
Park Ki Wong as Ming Dynasty Chief Eunuch
Kim Do Won as Young Ming Dynasty Chief Eunuch
Lee Seo Hwan as Ming Dynasty’s Vice Minister of Rites
Han Sung Yun as Yu Gon
Gong Jin Seo as Jan Yi
Kim Eun Min as Ming Emperor’s concubine
Yoon Seo Yeon as the Young Ming Emperor’s concubine
Jo Sung Kyu as Prince Changwoon’s steward
Kim Ki Doo as Bureau of Astrology Chief

Character Relationship Chart

Original Soundtrack

‘Shadow of You’ by Super Junior K.R.Y.
‘One and Only’ by Lyn
‘If I’ by Baek Ji Young
‘I Believe’ by Ahn Da Eun
‘Hide and Seek’ by Vromance
‘Full of You’ by Haeyoon (Cherry Bullet)
‘Full of You’ by Vromance
‘No Goodbye In Love’ by Rowoon

Trailer Videos

Official teaser

Awards & Nominations

TBA

Trivia

• This drama is adapted from comic with the same title by Lee So Young.
• This is Park Eun Bin‘s first sageuk piece in 7 years after ‘Secret Door’.
• ‘The King’s Affection’ is Rowoon‘s first historical piece, although he did shoot some historical scenes for ‘Extraordinary You’.
• Nam Yoon Su takes on a challenge in historical drama for the first time.
• The male leads are all above 180 cm.
• Rowoon and Byungchan are members of the boy groups SF9 and VICTON respectively.
• The filming began in April 2021 and took place in Jeonju, Mungyeong, Hadong, Yongin, and Andong.
• One of the supporting actors was diagnosed with coronavirus on July 24, halting the drama filming for two weeks.
• ‘The King’s Affection’ has been selected and supported as excellent broadcast video content by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Creative Content Agency.