The winners of the Seoul Drama Awards 2026 have been announced. This year’s awards received a record 352 entries from 46 countries and regions, with winners recognized across the International Competition, K-Drama, and International Invitation categories.
The Dream Life of Mr. Kim won the International Competition Miniseries Award as well as the K-Drama Grand Prize. Lead actor Ryu Seung Ryong also won the Best Actor award in the International Competition.
The drama follows a middle-aged office worker who has spent 25 years at a major corporation and explores how his career and personal experiences shape his identity. It was praised for realistically portraying the anxieties and dignity of middle-aged workers through a distinctly Korean story.
In the K-Drama category, The Dream Life of Mr. Kim and We Are All Trying Here both won the Grand Prize. Koo Kyo Hwan won Best Actor for We Are All Trying Here, while Lim Ji Yeon won Best Actress for My Royal Nemesis.
My Royal Nemesis also won the International Competition Miniseries Award, giving the drama and Lim Ji Yeon recognition in both the international and K-Drama categories.
Meanwhile, NCT’s Jaemin and BLACKPINK’s Jisoo were among the seven recipients of the Asia Star Award in the International Invitation category, which was selected through global fan voting. Jaemin was recognized for Wind Up, while Jisoo was honored for Boyfriend on Demand.
The 21st Seoul Drama Awards ceremony will take place on October 8th at KBS Hall in Yeouido. A red carpet event will be held before the ceremony, which will air live on MBC and the official Seoul Drama Awards YouTube channel starting at 4:55 p.m.
The event is also celebrating the 70th anniversary of Korean dramas with a special Drama Festa. The festivities will begin October 6th at COEX Magok, followed by drama talk concerts, OST concerts, and drama experience zones on October 9th and 10th at Banpo Hangang Park and Songpa Naru Park.
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Here are the full list of winners:
International Competition
Golden Bird Award: To be announced on September 29th
Program Awards
Grand Prize: A Better Man (Maipo Film, Beta Film)
TV Movie: Disclosure (W&B Television GmbH)
Miniseries: Pluribus (Apple TV)
Miniseries: My Royal Nemesis (Studio S Co., Ltd.)
Miniseries: The Dream Life of Mr. Kim (SLL)
Series: Had I Not Seen the Sun (Netflix, Gala Television Corporation, Make A Deal International Production Co., Ltd.)
Series: The Child (ERT S.A. HELLENIC BROADCASTING CORPORATION)
Short Form: Unfiltered (Vértigo Films)
Individual Awards
Best Director: Vince Gilligan, Gordon Smith (Pluribus)
Best Screenwriter: Thomas Seeberg Torjusen (A Better Man)
Best Actor: Anders Baasmo Christiansen (A Better Man), Ryu Seung Ryong (The Dream Life of Mr. Kim)
Best Actress: Elizaveta Maximová (Máma)
K-Drama Category
Grand Prize: The Dream Life of Mr. Kim, We Are All Trying Here
Individual Awards
Best Actor: Koo Kyo Hwan (We Are All Trying Here)
Best Actress: Lim Ji Yeon (My Royal Nemesis)
Best OST: Anton (Yumi’s Cells Season 3)
International Invitation Category
Asia Star Award: Jaemin, Jisoo, Yang Yang, Jin Akanishi, Paulo Avelino, Rebecca Patricia Armstrong, Gladys Bay
The 2026 awards attracted 352 entries from 46 countries and regions, marking a record for the Seoul Drama Awards.
Source: Seoul International Drama Awards
