KBS 2TV's "Descendants of the Sun" will be broadcast across Japan - and beyond. The production company, Next Entertainment World aka NEW, revealed that the blockbuster drama has already been exported to 32 countries.
The blockbuster drama, starring Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo, has now completed a rights agreement in 32 international broadcast partners. The production company's representative said that the rights have already been acquired in Asia, Oceania, in Europe, including in France, Germany and in the United Kingdom and in the Middle East, including in Saudi Arabia and Iran, Korea.net reported.
To date, the melodrama was hailed as the number 1 melodrama hit, as it recently wrapped up by drawing 41.6 viewership rating in local and nationwide TV rating game. Hence, it is considered as the first drama series to reach more than 30 percent rating in four years.
With the drama's positive response from the audiences, "Descendants of the Sun" seemingly had an increasingly expensive price tag, where the competition among buyers become fiercer. In fact, it has been reported that the drama was being sold to Japan for an estimated US$100,000 per episode.
"After its popularity exploded in both South Korea and China, Japanese buyers wanted to be the first one to buy 'Descendants of the Sun," Soompi quoted the industry's representative as saying.
Hence, the total 16 episodes of the show most likely have a price tag of 2 billion won (roughly US$1. 7 million). The drama is scheduled to premiere in June on the Japanese cable channel, Eisei Gekijou.
The top-rating drama is also expected to air on the Philippines' TV screen with lines dubbed in Tagalog. The good news came to light when GMA Network took to Twitter on March 23 to announce that the drama will be telecasted as part of its "The Heart of Asia" programming block.
The drama recounts the story between Captain Yoo Si Jin aka Big Boss and Dr. Kang Mo Yeon, who stayed hopelessly enamored with one another in the midst of conflicted battlefield that they encounter after being stationed in an anecdotal war-torn country of Urk.
Much to the delight of the fans, a representative from KBS announced that the giant company is set to air a three-part special about the show from April 20 to 22 at 10 p.m. KST. The initial two episodes contain the highlight reels, which is said to be 70 minutes each long, while the final special episode will contain the making-of epilogue.
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