Disney+ K-drama slate stirs buzz by leaving out one of 2025’s most anticipated releases

Disney+ revealed its 2025 K-drama lineup packed with major titles and ambitious projects, but one name was impossible to miss because it wasn’t there. Knock-Off, once announced as one of Disney+’s crown jewels, was suddenly absent, without explanation or acknowledgment.

The omission didn’t go unnoticed. Fans who had followed the project’s development from the start began raising questions. How does a drama that was once positioned to anchor a platform’s strategy simply vanish?

The absence rippled beyond just fan circles. Industry insiders, commentators, and even casual observers understood that this was more than a scheduling change or a quiet delay. At its center was a name too big to ignore, Kim Soo-hyun, and a scandal that reshaped the actor’s career and Disney+’s approach to its Korean ambitions.

What is Knock-Off and why was it anticipated?

Knock-Off was never going to be just another K-drama. From its earliest announcements, the project stood out for its ambition. The story followed Kim Seong-jun, a former office worker who finds himself swept into the underworld of counterfeit goods in the years following the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

This was not the polished world of corporate boardrooms or romantic love triangles that many K-drama fans were used to but a grittier, more morally tangled setting, with a lead character that navigated blurred lines between survival and corruption.

Kim Soo-hyun’s casting only amplified the buzz. Known for his ability to deliver emotionally complex performances, Kim was more than just a star. He was synonymous with quality.

His past projects, whether romantic dramas, historical epics, or psychological thrillers, consistently earned both critical and commercial success. Audiences trusted his choices. Adding Jo Bo-ah to the mix? With an actress praised for her range and charisma, the hype was even higher.

But the stakes went beyond these two artists. For Disney+, Knock-Off represented a statement of intent. Global platforms have been vying to capture slices of the lucrative K-drama market, with Netflix setting the pace and local streamers innovating at breakneck speed.

For Disney+, still relatively new in this space, a project like Knock-Off was a chance to prove it could stand shoulder to shoulder with the industry’s biggest players. It wasn’t just about ratings or subscriptions but legitimacy.

There was also a bigger symbolic weight here. Disney+ has been working hard to carve out space in the K-drama scene, competing with local broadcasters and global giants like Netflix.

Knock-Off wasn’t just another drama. It was meant to be proof that Disney+ could play at the same high-stakes level, delivering edgy, relevant, conversation-starting content.

Why was Knock-Off left out of the slate?

As Disney+ unveiled its 2025 K-drama lineup, titles like Tempest and Hyper Knife were given prominent placement. But Knock-Off was nowhere to be found. There was no official announcement, no press release explaining a delay or shift. It simply disappeared from the conversation.

The reason, of course, was impossible to ignore. In early 2025, headlines erupted about Kim Soo-hyun’s past relationship with the late actress Kim Sae-ron. Allegations surfaced suggesting the relationship began when she was still underage.

The topic was volatile, emotional, and deeply polarizing. Kim denied the early timeline but admitted they had dated as adults. Public trust, however, had already begun to crack.

The fallout was immediate. Brands rushed to suspend partnerships. Public opinion, once largely favorable, split sharply. Within days, the industry had recalibrated.

Disney+, watching the storm intensify, made the quiet but calculated decision to freeze Knock-Off. Officially, the project was placed on indefinite hold, but its absence from the 2025 slate spoke louder than any formal cancellation ever could.

Adding to the intensity is how quickly the industry has responded. Brands, networks, and collaborators have not waited for legal resolutions before pulling back, signaling how fragile reputation can be in this space.

The entertainment world, especially at the top tiers, is quick to protect its image, often leaving individual stars isolated when scandals arise, no matter how well-known they are or how long they’ve dominated the spotlight.

What are the financial and reputational stakes?

For Kim Soo-hyun, the risks tied to Knock-Off go far beyond artistic disappointment.

If the series is formally canceled, contractual penalties could cost him between 18 billion and 180 billion won, roughly 12 to 123 million dollars. These figures are staggering on their own, but they don’t include the secondary financial blows. The termination of lucrative endorsement deals, the loss of future casting opportunities, and the ripple effects across related industries stack up.

In South Korea, where a celebrity’s reputation is often tied to public morality, a single scandal can collapse years of built-up brand value overnight.

Kim’s fall from grace feels particularly sharp because of who he was in the public eye. He wasn’t just popular. He was beloved, trusted, and widely seen as a role model. His past projects carried a certain emotional weight because audiences believed in him not just as an actor but as a person. When that trust fractures, the damage cuts deeper, not just to his bank account but to the cultural space he once occupied.

For Disney+, the risks are equally complex. Platforms invest in more than just scripts and production values. They invest in the symbolic capital of their talent, in the promises they make to audiences about the kind of content they support and the kinds of figures they elevate.

Walking away from Knock-Off is about protecting the larger ecosystem of Disney+’s international brand, signaling to global markets and local audiences alike that the platform is responsive, careful, and tuned in to public sentiment.

What does this mean for Disney+ and its K-drama ambitions?

The collapse of Knock-Off leaves Disney+ in a delicate position.

On one hand, the platform still boasts an impressive 2025 K-drama slate, with major productions ready to roll out. But Knock-Off was supposed to be a flagship, the kind of show that signals confidence, ambition, and a willingness to push creative boundaries. Losing it is a blow to momentum.

Disney+ now faces tough questions about how it wants to shape its Korean strategy. Will the platform continue pursuing bold, high-risk projects tied to top-tier stars? Or will it pivot toward safer ensemble casts, spreading out both creative and reputational risk?

These decisions aren’t just about numbers on a spreadsheet. They touch on identity, on what kind of platform Disney+ wants to be as it battles competitors like Netflix, Amazon, and local giants.

At the same time, Disney+ has an opportunity here. The way it handles the Knock-Off fallout, whether through transparency, recalibration, or renewed commitments to ethical casting, can set the tone for its relationships with creators, audiences, and industry partners.

This is not just a test of content strategy. It’s a test of character.

What does it all mean going forward?

Among fans, the divide has deepened. Some continue to defend Kim Soo-hyun, pointing to his body of work and calling for patience until legal outcomes are finalized. Others argue that the damage has been done, that the emotional weight of the allegations overshadows any artistic merit. Social media remains a battleground, with petitions, hashtags, and opinion pieces keeping the conversation alive day after day.

Disney+, meanwhile, has stayed silent. Insiders suggest the platform is closely watching how legal and public reactions evolve, unwilling to commit until the dust settles. But the longer the silence stretches, the more it risks appearing disengaged or indecisive. In the streaming world, where perception moves fast, waiting too long to act can sometimes become its own kind of statement.

Beyond the headlines, the Knock-Off saga touches on a broader shift happening across global entertainment. Audiences are no longer just passive consumers. They are active participants in shaping which stories get told, which actors stay in the spotlight, and which platforms hold their loyalty.

For Disney+, navigating this landscape will take more than big budgets and glossy productions. It will take a genuine understanding of the emotional contracts that bind audiences to the stories they love.

In the end, the absence of Knock-Off speaks volumes about the fragile, shifting balance between art, reputation, and power. Whether Kim Soo-hyun finds a path back or whether Disney+ quietly lets the project fade, this moment will linger as a reminder that in today’s entertainment world, no one, not even the biggest stars or the most powerful platforms, moves untouched by the weight of public judgment.