VOTING CLOSED! For The 1st Annual ZAPZEE Awards

Best Drama Series

Extraordinary Attorney Woo recorded the highest viewership rating in ENA history and earned the title of “the founding contributor” of the channel. Its success story doesn’t end there, as it accumulated a whopping 662,090,000 watch hours on Netflix at the time of its broadcast, though Reborn surpassed the viewership record set by Extraordinary Attorney Woo just three weeks after its premiere and became the latest drama sensation at the end of 2022. Alchemy of Souls gained about 239,720,000 hours watched on Netflix as the romance between Lee Jae Wook and Jung So Min won many hearts around the globe, while Little Women was both critically acclaimed and commercially successful as a high-quality drama fully played, written and directed by female industry insiders. Business Proposal broke the invisible barrier of the romantic comedy genre and gained much popularity in Europe, the United States, and South America. My Liberation Notes, penned by My Mister writer Park Hae Young, created a “worship syndrome” and formed a strong fandom. Twenty-five and Twenty-one recorded about 171,610,000 watch hours on Netflix, making viewers curious whether the romance between Kim Tae Ri and Nam Joo Hyuk would work out. 

Best Picture

The Roundup gave hope to the theater industry by attracting an audience of 10 million people for the first time since the COVID-19 outbreak. Confidential Assignment 2: International received better reviews than it did on its first installment and did exceptionally well at the box office. Decision to Leave received rave reviews from both audiences and critics, and there has been a lot of debate on whether it will be nominated for next year’s Academy Awards. With its better-than-expected quality and intriguing plot, Lee Jung Jae’s directorial debut film Hunt was also loved by many moviegoers. Hansan: Rising Dragon is drawing expectations for the next installment of Kim Han Min’s trilogy about battles led by Yi Sun Sin, as it has received favorable reviews from critics for the improved storyline in comparison to the first film. The 20th Century Girl received the most outstanding reviews among all Korean Netflix films, and according to Flix Patrol, the movie became the most-watched flick in 12 countries. Broker stars Song Kang Ho and IU won Best Actor and Best New Actress at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards. 

Best Actor

Ma Dong Seok is an excellent example of an actor who won the public’s hearts through “branding” his image, and The Roundup was the movie that proved his strategy to be effective. Hyun Bin showed off his star power at the box office by leading Confidential Assignment 2: International to great success following his marriage to Son Ye Jin, while Park Hae Il received unanimous praise for his outstanding performance in Decision to Leave and played a big role in Hansan: Rising Dragon’s success. Son Suk Ku rose to stardom through My Liberation Notes while playing a key role in The Roundup’s legendary box office hit. Song Joong Ki is currently a hot topic, raising the stagnant JTBC ratings with his latest series Reborn Rich. Lee Jong Suk made his first drama comeback through Big Mouth after his discharge from the military and is now considered the most likely candidate for the Grand Prize at the MBC Drama Awards. Kang Tae Oh, who played the second lead most of the time, became a “trusted” leading actor through Extraordinary Attorney Woo. 

Best Actress

Twenty-Five, Twenty-One star Kim Tae Ri led the drama to success and won Best Actress in the TV category at the Baeksang Arts Awards, while Kim Hye Soo showed off her irreplaceable presence in Juvenile Justice and Under the Queen’s Umbrella. Kim Go Eun raised expectations for her new project, making back-to-back hits with Yumi’s Cells 2 and Little Women. Park Eun Bin undoubtedly became one of the most demanded A-list actors after bringing success to Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Do You Like Brahms? and The King’s Affection. Kim Yoo Jung showcased her fully bloomed acting prowess in 20th Century Girl and led the movie to great success. Kim Ji Won, dubbed the “rom-com queen,” successfully widened her acting spectrum through My Liberation Notes, and Jung So Min showed impressive chemistry with Lee Jae Wook in hit series Alchemy of Souls. 

Best New Actor

Lomon quickly became a new rising star through All of Us Are Dead and made himself known to the public with his handsome looks, while Daniel Kang successfully made his acting debut with Disney Plus original series Rookie Cops. Moon Sang Min, who made his name known through his dating rumors with Han So Hee, solidified his position as an actor through Under the Queen’s Umbrella. Choi Hyun Wook boasted great chemistry with Park Ji Hoon and Hong Kyung in Weak Hero Class 1, heightening expectations for his next project. Park Seo Han and Jaechan, the two stars of Semantic Error who started the BL drama craze, rose to stardom instantly. 

Best New Actress

Cho Yi Hyun, who caught the attention of the public for her onscreen romance with Lomon in All of Us Are Dead, is another rising star with solid acting skills that the series has produced. Park Ji Hu quickly established herself as a noteworthy actress with her performance in All of Us Are Dead and Little Women. Our Blues and 20th Century Girl actress Roh Yoon Seo also made herself known to the public with her innocent looks and stable acting. Kim Min Ha instantly captivated audiences around the globe with her performance as the young You Yuh Jung in Apple series Pachinko. WJSN’s Bona solidified her presence as an actress through her role in Twenty-Five, Twenty-One. 

The Song of the Year

BLACKPINK went beyond fans’ expectations with their long-awaited comeback after a two-year hiatus. Their “Pink Venom” music video surpassed 100 million views on YouTube in just 29 hours after its release, setting a new record for female artists around the world. IVE debuted last December but quickly emerged as one of the most promising rookie K-pop groups. They rose to stardom by making a splash on various music charts with “LOVE DIVE” for months, and NewJeans successfully made their debut, receiving much love with their “Hype Boy” challenge. (G)I-DLE achieved immense success through their first full-length album I NEVER DIE and their title song “TOMBOY” which stayed atop various music charts for months. BIGBANG’s “Still Life,” a new song they presented to the public after a long four-year break, dominated the South Korean music charts and proved their undying popularity. PSY drew attention with his surprising collaboration track with BTS’ Suga. The title song of his 9th studio album, “That That” climbed up to the top of the Melon and Genie charts and earned him two MAMA Awards in 2022. 

The Artist of the Year

BTS announced their indefinite hiatus after releasing their anthology album Proof. Each member went on to focus more on their solo activities and saw huge Billboard successes every time they released a new song. Stray Kids is currently leading the fourth generation of K-pop, taking first place on the Billboard 200 chart for two consecutive years with ODDINARY and MAXIDENT. TWICE set a new record by selling more than 10 million copies of their mini-album BETWEEN 1&2 after renewing their contract with JYP in July. SEVENTEEN became the seventh million sellers, with Face the Sun and SECTOR 17 going strong on the Billboard 200 charts. TOMORROW X TOGETHER successfully entered Billboard’s year-end charts for two consecutive years and completed their first world tour. 

We are looking forward to your participation and lively discussions!

Voting ends on December 31st, at 11:59PM (PST).