Snowdrop (Korean: 설강화) is a South Korean television series starring Jung Hae-in, Jisoo, Yoo In-na, Jang Seung-jo, Yoon Se-ah, Kim Hye-yoon, and Jung Yoo-jin. It aired on JTBC in South Korea and was released on Disney+ as a Star Original in Asia-Pacific countries from December 18, 2021, to January 30, 2022, every Saturday and Sunday at 22:30 (KST) for 16 episodes. It was later released in other European and North American countries including the US (as a Disney+ Original) on February 9, 2022.
The story centers around the enduring love story in Seoul, where female college student Yeong-ro treats a comraded Soo-ho, and helps him return his peace.
Synopsis[]
Snowdrop is set in the backdrop of 1987, a crucial time in South Korean history, as it was the year that citizens protested and called for an end to the authoritarian government. The drama tells the love story of Jung Hae-in's Im Soo-ho, a North Korean spy and Jisoo's Young-ro, a college student.
Plot[]
Snowdrop takes place in 1987, a pivotal year in South Korean history that included the June 1987 Democracy Movement, a mass protest movement with the purpose of forcing the dictatorship in South Korea to hold fair elections, and the resulting December 1987 democratic elections, which led to the end of the authoritarian Fifth Republic of Korea and the establishment of the democratic Sixth Republic of Korea. Lim Soo-ho (Jung Hae-in) plays a graduate student who is found covered in blood by Eun Yeong-ro (Jisoo), a female university student and hides him from the government in her dorm room. However, it is revealed that Soo-ho is not who he appears to be. Against the backdrop of political upheaval, the pair's story unfolds and the two develop a romantic relationship.
Cast[]
- Jung Hae-in as Lim Soo-ho
- Jisoo as Eun Yeong-ro
- Yoo In-na as Kang Cheong-ya
- Jang Seung-jo as Lee Gang-mu
- Yoon Se-ah as Pi Seung-hee
- Kim Hye-yoon as Gye Bun-ok
- Jung Yoo-jin as Jang Han-na
- Kim Min-kyu as Joo Gyeok-chan
- Jang In-sub as Lee Eung-cheol
- Heo Nam-joon as Oh Gwang-tae
- Jeon Moo-song as Lim Ji-rok
- Jeon Ae-ri as Choi Soo-ryeon
- Chae Won-bin as Lim Soo-hui
- Jung Shin-hye as Go Hye-ryeong
- Kim Mi-soo as Yeo Jeong-min
- Choi Hee-jin as Yoon Seol-hui
- Song Geon-hee as Eun Yeong-u
- Ahn Dong-goo as Choi Byung-tae
- Kim Jong-soo as Kim Man-dong
- Nam Mi-jung as Oh Deok-shim
- Kim Jeong-hoon as Kim Sang-beom
- Heo Joon-ho as Eun Chang-su
- Park Sung-woong as Nam Tae-il
- Lee Hwa-ryong as Ahn Gyeong-hui
- Kim Jung-nan as Hong Ae-ra
- Jung Hye-young as Cho Seong-sim
- Baek Ji-won as Choi Mi-hye
- Jang Tae-min as Choi Hui-jun
- Moon Yoo-kang as Seung-jun
- Choi Kyung-hoon as Oh Dong-jae
- Choi Yoon-je as ANSP team member Hai Feau-Nam
- Jung Yi-seo as Shin Gyeong-ja
- Park Ye-ni as Kim Ye-ni
- Ariane Desgagnés-Leclerc as Gong Gil-soon
- Lee Jung-hyun as Park Geum-cheol
- Lee Joo-ahn as Jun-pyo
- Kang Moon-kyung as Park Moo-yeol
- Yum Jung-ah as Song Hye-joo
Production[]
Development[]
Written by Yoo Hyun-mi and directed by Jo Hyun-tak, Snowdrop is their second collaboration after having worked together on the hit satirical thriller Sky Castle (2018–19). Based on the memoirs of a man who escaped a political prison camp in North Korea, Yoo Hyun-mi had been planning the series for twelve years. The early working title of the series was Leehwa Women's University Dormitory (이대 기숙사; Idae Gisuksa).
Casting[]
On June 18, 2020, media reported that Kim Hye-yoon, who was propelled to fame after starring in Sky Castle, was in talks to star in the series; her agency confirmed that she was reviewing the offer. On August 18, reports of Jisoo being cast as one of the lead actresses for the series surfaced. It was confirmed later that day by Jisoo's agency, YG Entertainment. On August 24, Kim Hye-yoon was confirmed to co-star alongside Jisoo and it was reported that Jung Hae-in had received an offer but was still reviewing it. Jang Seung-jo officially joined the cast on August 26, followed by Jung Yoo-jin on September 17 and Yoon Se-ah on September 18. On October 5, 2020, the main cast and details on the characters were confirmed by JTBC. Yoo In-na officially joined the cast on December 28.
Filming[]
On November 24, 2020, JTBC announced that filming for Snowdrop was temporarily halted after a supporting actor came into close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19. The following day, JTBC confirmed that filming would resume after all cast and crew members tested negative for the virus. Filming was completed in late July 2021.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- This drama is the second collaboration between director Hyun Tak Jo and script writer Yoo Hyun-Mi after their successful Korean drama SKY Castle (2018).
- This K-drama is Blackpink singer Jisoo's first major TV role.
- This is the first K-Drama that is ever to be considered as a Disney series.
- To date, it is the one of two series that were released on Disney+ as both a Disney+ Original and a Star Original (the other is the Chinese drama series Delicacies Destiny (Chinese: 珍馐记)).
- However, Snowdrop premiered on cable television channel JTBC first and then became available on Disney+, but Delicacies Destiny was only released on the Internet (it premiered on Disney+ and the Chinese video website Bilibili at same time).
