Iris (South Korean TV series)

Iris
Promotional poster
Hangul
아이리스
Revised RomanizationA-iriseu
McCune–ReischauerAirisŭ
Genre
Created byJung Tae-won
Written by
Directed by
Starring
Composers
  • Lee Dong-joon
  • Choi Sung-kown
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languages
  • Korean
  • English
  • Japanese
  • Hungarian
  • Mandarin
No. of episodes20
Production
Executive producerChoi Ji-young
ProducerKim Young-jo
Production locations
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time60 minutes
Production companies
  • Taewon Entertainment
  • H Plus
Budget₩40 billion
Original release
NetworkKBS2
ReleaseOctober 14 (2009-10-14) –
December 17, 2009 (2009-12-17)
Related
Athena: Goddess of War
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

Iris (Korean아이리스) is a 2009 South Korean television series starring Lee Byung-hun, Kim Tae-hee, Jung Joon-ho, Kim Seung-woo, Kim So-yeon and Choi Seung-hyun. The plot revolves around two best friends from the 707th Special Mission Group recruited into a secret South Korean black ops agency known as the National Security Service. As the two friends find their loyalties tested and forge new, unlikely alliances, the journey takes them from their home country to Hungary, Japan, and China where they find themselves at the center of an international conspiracy. It aired on KBS2 from October 14 to December 17, 2009, every Wednesday and Thursday at 21:55 (KST).

With a budget in excess of 40 billion (US$34.97 million), Iris along with its spin-off Athena: Goddess of War, share the record for the most expensive Korean dramas ever produced.[1][2] The series was a critical and commercial success, with an average viewership of over 30% in addition to ranking as the top program consistently every week after its debut.[3] The series also took home many of the highest honors at the 2009 KBS Drama Awards, including the Daesang Award for Lee Byung-hun.

The success of the series has led to a feature film, a 2010 spin-off, and a sequel series in 2013.

  1. ^ Hicap, Jonathan M. (2010-01-02). "'G.I. Joe' star Lee Byung-hun wins big in KBS Drama Awards". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on 2012-09-05. Retrieved 2010-04-24.
  2. ^ Una, Beck (2010-05-31). "Interview: Producer Chung Tae-won - Part 1". 10Asia. Archived from the original on 2010-06-09. Retrieved 2010-06-03.
  3. ^ Lee Jae-hwan (2009-12-11). "'아이리스' 35.7% 12회연속 30%대, 최승희도 IRIS?". Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2012-03-18. Retrieved 2010-04-21.