South Korean drama ‘Extraordinary Attorney Woo’ is the latest series from the country to be making waves on Netflix around the world.
The show revolves around a young and gifted attorney with autism spectrum disorder who cracks cases at her law firm in brilliant ways.
Here are four things that the streaming service has revealed about this special TV show...
It’s a breakout hit
After debuting in late June, the show was the No 1 series on Netflix’s Global Top 10 non-English TV charts for two consecutive weeks. It also topped the charts in South Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
It took a year for the lead actress to say ‘yes’
Actress Park Eun-bin plays character Woo Young-woo, the main character that’s at the core of the story. On the show, she faces struggles with her autism spectrum disorder and prejudices because of it, but she wins over her co-workers because she can catch details and loopholes in legal cases unlike anyone else.
In a Netflix statement, the show’s screenwriter Moon Ji-won said: “Once she takes on a case, it takes a turn that viewers could not have seen before anywhere else.”
However, Park needed to be convinced that she could do justice to the role. Netflix said it took a year for the director Yu In-Sik and the writer to get her to play Woo Young-woo.
Once she agreed, Park “threw herself into the character and met with expert professors specialising in the study of autism spectrum disorder as part of her detailed research.”
“I focused on her sincere heart,” Park said about playing Woo. “I didn’t want to limit this character, so I was really open to all possible options in expressing her heart freely. She is such a spirited and courageous person, and I was able to learn a lot from this character.”
Ad-libs led to some popular lines
Actor Kang Ki-young plays senior lawyer Jung Myeong-seok on the show, where he takes on the role as Woo’s reluctant mentor.
“I was most worried about whether I could be convincing in the part of a seasoned attorney,” he said.
However, he ended up acing the role and proving ad-libbed lines that have become popular with fans.
Commenting on YouTube clips, fans said: “I can’t believe that the scenes that made me laugh the hardest were all ad-libs. It shows how much character study he has done.”
Series dares to be different
Legal dramas have always been popular, but ‘Extraordinary Attorney Woo’ tries out a different angle.
Instead of focusing on creating tension on the show, the K-drama instead pays more importance to shedding light on interesting details in the cases and celebrating the rapport between characters.
Its careful depiction of a person with autism spectrum disorder has also been appreciated by fans.
Park said: “I am truly grateful for the global viewers who are exploring Young-woo’s world with us. Please remember to stay tuned until the very end!”
Don’t miss it!
Two new episodes of ‘Extraordinary Attorney Woo’ release on Netflix every Wednesday and Thursday.
