Mr. Queen
Mr. Queen () is a 2020–2021 South Korean television series. Directed by Yoon Sung-sik, it stars Shin Hye-sun as Queen Cheorin and Kim Jung-hyun as King Cheoljong. The drama is about Queen Cheorin finding herself with the soul of a modern-day man inside her body, and King Cheoljong striving to be a king who helps his people. It aired on tvN every Saturday and Sunday at 21:00 (KST) from December 12, 2020 to February 14, 2021. Despite its controversies, the series is the seventh highest rated drama in Korean cable television history, with the last  episode reached a nationwide rating of 17.371% and garnering more than 4 million in viewership. It also set a record for tvN by achieving the 5th highest rating in the network's history. Synopsis. In the modern age, Jang Bong-hwan (Choi Jin-hyuk) is a chef who works at the Blue House. He has a free spirit, but one day finds himself in the body of Queen Cheorin (Shin Hye-sun) in the Joseon period. King Cheoljong (Kim Jung-hyun), the reigning monarch, is a gentle and easy-going person. However, he is only King in name, while the  true power is wielded by the late King Sunjo's wife, Queen Sunwon (Bae Jong-ok), who has relegated Cheoljong to a figurehead. Queen Cheorin soon discovers that the King is not what he seems, and that he has a dark and suspicious side to him. Production. In March 2020, Shin Hye-sun was confirmed to be a part of the drama. In June 2020, Kim Jung-hyun, Bae Jong-ok, Kim Tae-woo joined her to play lead roles in the series. In July 2020, Seol In-ah and Yoo Young-jae also joined the cast. In October the  first script reading was held. The stills from filming of the series were released on November 16, 2020. The series reunites actors Kim Jung-hyun and Seol In-ah who previously acted together in the drama "School 2017". It also marks the second collaboration of Shin Hye-sun with actors Bae Jong-ok, Kim In-kwon and with whom she acted in the film "Innocence" and the dramas "" and "Legend of the Blue Sea", respectively. On November 24, 2020, filming was stopped as one of the supporting actors tested positive for COVID-19. Release. From November 4, 2021 the series is  available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Spin-off. tvN announced that they would be airing a spin-off titled "Mr. Queen: The Secret" (official Korean name: "Mr. Queen: Bamboo Forest)," which featured the secrets and an extended love story of King Cheoljong and Queen Cheorin. It aired exclusively on the streaming service, TVING after the end of the main series' episodes 19 and 20 on February 13–14. Original soundtrack. Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Mr. Queen: The Bamboo Forest OST Mr. Queen OST (Various Artists) Chart  performance Reception. Controversies. Following its airing, a controversy erupted in episode 2 as the series referred to Korea's national treasure, the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty as a "tabloid." This drew outrage among viewers and about 700 people filed complaints to the Korea Communications Standards Commission. The series was also criticised as the author of the original Chinese drama has made negative remarks about Korea in their other work. The producers released a statement clarifying their stand and apologising for the controversies, adding that they were not aware of the negative comments made by the novelist. Audience viewership . An 8.0% viewership rating was recorded nationwide for the first episode, making it the second-highest premiere rating of any weekend drama of the network and fifth-highest premiere rating of the network after "Hospital Playlist 2", "Jirisan", "Mr. Sunshine", and "Encounter". As per Nielsen Korea, the final episode logged a national average viewership of 17.37%, breaking its own highest ratings, thereby making the series 7th highest-rated drama in Korean cable television history.