# Kokdu: Season of Deity

Kokdu: Season of Deity (Korean: 꼭두의 계절; RR: Kkokduui Gyejeol) is a 2023 South Korean television series starring Kim Jung-hyun, Im Soo-hyang, Kim Da-som, Ahn Woo-yeon, Kim In-kwon, and Cha Chung-hwa. It aired on MBC TV from January 27 to March 24, 2023, every Friday and Saturday at 21:50 (KST). It is also available for streaming on Wavve in South Korea, and on IQIYI, Viki and Viu in selected regions.

## Synopsis

The series is about a grim reaper named Kokdu (Kim Jung-hyun) who visits the mortal world every 99 years to punish humans. He meets Dr. Han Gye-jeol (Im Soo-hyang), a doctor with mysterious abilities, and starts working as a visiting doctor.

## Cast
### Main

* Kim Jung-hyun as Kokdu / Do Jin-woo / Oh-hyeon
* Kokdu: an underworld god who has been cursed to lead the deceased in the afterlife after angering the Creator, and has to enter a human body that looks just like him to carry out the murders of immoral people.
* Do Jin-woo: a successful surgeon and Gye-jeol's fellow hospital worker, who is possessed by Kokdu.
* Oh-hyeon: Seol-hee's lover who was cursed by the Creator to become Kokdu.
* Im Soo-hyang as Han Gye-jeol / Seol-hee
* Han Gye-jeol: an ER doctor who graduated from the lowest-ranking medical school in the country.
* Seol-hee: Gye-jeol in a past life, who is a princess that was loved by Oh-hyeon for a long time.
* Kim Da-som as Tae Jeong-won
    A talented woman who never missed the first rank from the time she entered Korea University of Medicine until graduation.
* Ahn Woo-yeon as Han Cheol
    Gye-jeol's younger brother who is a detective.
* Kim In-kwon as Oksin / Lee Eung-chul
    A demigod whose purpose of existence is to assist Kokdu. In the human world he poses as a chaebol.
* Cha Chung-hwa as Gaksin / Seo Bok-gyeong
    The god of rumor with the highest level of nunchi. In the human world, she poses as a YouTube influencer, and later, a nurse.

### Supporting
#### Pilseong Bio

* Choi Kwang-il as Kim Pil-soo
    Chairman of Pilseong Hospital.
* Kim Young-woong as Jung-sik
    Pil-soo's shadow who is a murderer with fourteen convictions.

#### People in Yeongpo City

* Lee Jung-joon as Jung Yi-deun
    Gye-jeol's ex-boyfriend.
* Kim Byeong-ok as Shin Hong-geun
    Owner of Yongwang-nim Samgyeopsal.
* Oh Young-sil as Oh Kyung-seung
    Hong-geun's wife.
* Lee Young-ran as Moon Myung-ja
    CEO of Yeongpo Jongga Co.
* Woo Hyun as Choi Dal-seung
    Myung-ja's husband who is the president of Yeongpo Small Business Association.
* Kim Byeong-chun as Bae Jeong-guk
    Manager of Fire Fist Gym.
* Min Jun-ho as Detective Kim
    A homicide detective.

#### Pilseong Hospital

* Son So-mang as Sa Guk-hwa
    Jeong-won's friend who is a nurse at Pilseong Hospital.

### Extended

* Jung Ah-mi as Jang Mi-soon
    Jin-woo's biological mother who is a professor of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery at Pilseong Hospital.
* Oh Yeon-ah as Ji Soo-yeon
    A doctor at Pilseong Hospital.
* Park Shin-woo as Jo Bong-pil
    A pharmacist who does not hesitate to commit illegal and evil acts.
* Jung Wook as Park Chung-seong

### Special appearances

* Jung Young-joo as a deceased patient's daughter
* Sung Byeong-sook as a patient
* Kim Kang-hoon as the Creator
* Yoo Jae-suk as an employee
* Jeong Jun-ha as an employee
* Lee Mi-joo as an employee
* Wang Bit-na as Gye-jeol's mother

## Production

Filming of the series had started by September 2022.
Hangout with Yoo cast members Yoo Jae-suk, Jeong Jun-ha and Lee Mi-joo made cameo appearances on Kokdu: Season of Deity as part of the variety show's "HWY HR" segment. The filming of their scene with lead actress Im Soo-hyang was conducted in Ganghwa County, and was broadcast on the show on October 22, 2022.
On October 31, 2022, the production team announced that filming for the series was halted due to the death of actor Lee Ji-han who died on October 29 during the Seoul Halloween crowd crush tragedy, and would resume at a later date after reorganization. It was reported that Lee took the role of Jung Yi-deun, the ex-boyfriend of Im Soo-hyang's character. On November 7, an official from MBC confirmed that filming would resume on that day, and the production team decided to find a replacement for the late actor after much deliberation. It was later announced that Lee Jung-joon [ko] would join the cast, taking over Lee Ji-han's role.

## Release

The series was initially scheduled to premiere at the end of 2022, but was pushed back to January 2023.

## Viewership

| Season | Season | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number |
| Season | Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| | 1 | 858 | N/A | 560 | N/A | N/A | N/A | 523 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Average TV viewership ratings :
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) |
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Nationwide | Seoul |
| 1 | January 27, 2023 | 4.8% (14th) | 4.8% (14th) |
| 2 | January 28, 2023 | 2.2% (33rd) | N/A |
| 3 | February 3, 2023 | 3.1% (20th) | 3.2% (19th) |
| 4 | February 4, 2023 | 2.4% (34th) | N/A |
| 5 | February 10, 2023 | 2.8% (24th) | N/A |
| 6 | February 11, 2023 | 1.9% (36th) | N/A |
| 7 | February 17, 2023 | 2.7% (23rd) | N/A |
| 8 | February 18, 2023 | 1.4% (47th) | N/A |
| 9 | February 24, 2023 | 2.0% (29th) | N/A |
| 10 | February 25, 2023 | 1.7% (43rd) | N/A |
| 11 | March 3, 2023 | 1.6% (36th) | N/A |
| 12 | March 4, 2023 | 2.0% (31st) | N/A |
| 13 | March 11, 2023 | 1.4% (43rd) | N/A |
| 14 | March 17, 2023 | 1.4% (37th) | N/A |
| 15 | March 18, 2023 | 1.3% (43rd) | N/A |
| 16 | March 24, 2023 | 1.6% (37th) | N/A |
| Average | Average | 2.1% | — |
| In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings N/A denotes ratings that were not published. ||||

## Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee(s) of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee / Work | Result | Ref. |
| MBC Drama Awards | 2023 | Best Supporting Actor | Cha Chung-hwa | Won | |
| MBC Drama Awards | 2023 | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries | Im Soo-hyang | Nominated | |