‘The King’s Affection’ becomes first Korean drama to win Int’l Emmy

The South Korean historical romance “The King’s Affection” has become the country’s first TV drama to win an International Emmy, the drama’s broadcaster said Tuesday.

KBS said the series was chosen as the winner of the International Emmy Award for Best Telenovela during the 50th awards ceremony held in New York City on Monday (local time). The Korean show beat nominees from China, Spain and Brazil to take home the honor.

Starring Park Eun-bin and Rowoon, the 20-part series is about a fictional princess of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) who has been raised as her deceased twin brother and becomes a king.

This image provided by South Korean TV broadcaster KBS introduces its TV series “The King’s Affection” as a nominee for the 50th International Emmy Awards. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

The International Emmy Awards is considered one of the world’s three big awards for television programs, along with Canada’s Banff World Media Festival and Monaco’s Monte-Carlo Television Festival.

Bestowed by the New York–based International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the International Emmys are presented in recognition to the best television programs initially produced and aired outside the United States.

During the ceremony, Lee Mie-kyung, vice chair of Korean entertainment giant CJ Group, received the International Emmy Directorate Award for her contribution to international television, CJ ENM said.

Widely known as Miky Lee, she is behind K-pop’s global success and “Parasite” (2019), the first foreign language film in history to win the Oscar for best picture.