CNN predicts big things for Korean series 'Extraordinary Attorney Woo'

A scene from ENA's ″Extraordinary Attorney Woo″ [ASTORY]

CNN has predicted that ENA’s legal drama series “Extraordinary Attorney Woo” has the potential to become the next “Squid Game.”

In an article titled "Next 'Squid Game?' Big ratings on Netflix boosts hope for next Korean hit," published Wednesday, the media outlet highlighted the series’ production company Astory, introducing it as a Korean production studio behind global zombie horror hit “Kingdom” (2019-).

“Shares of the production company have surged 74 percent in Seoul since the debut of ‘Extraordinary Attorney Woo’ in late June,” it said.

“It also bodes well for Netflix, which is increasingly producing original international content and leaning on growth prospects overseas.”

According to the article, Netflix has been focusing on growth in the Asia Pacific region to offset the declines in other regions such as the United States and Canada.

“South Korean content is especially important to the streaming giant after the massive success of ‘Squid Game’ last year, which had become the company’s top show globally,” the article wrote.

"Squid Game" is Netflix’s most-watched series, surpassing 1 billion views in just 28 days after its release last September.

“Extraordinary Attorney Woo” revolves around brilliant rookie attorney Woo Young-woo, portrayed by Park Eun-bin, who is on the autism spectrum. Each episode centers around different cases and the people she encounters while working at big-name law firm Hanbada. She resolves each case in her own unique way and crushes the stereotypes of the people who look down on her.

Aired twice weekly on cable channel ENA, the series started out with a viewership rating of 0.9 percent. That number surged to 11.7 percent for Episode 7 which aired on Wednesday.

The series, which was made available through Netflix, is being streamed worldwide dubbed in 31 languages. It has consecutively topped the streaming service’s Global Top 10 chart in the category of non-English language TV shows for two weeks. The series ranks No. 1 in the category in eight countries and appeared in the Top 10 for 22 countries.

An article published by Bloomberg Wednesday reported that stocks in Astory have rallied 82 percent in July due to the success of “Extraordinary Attorney Woo” and that “traders hunting for the next ‘Squid Game’ pile in to grab opportunities” in the stock market.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]