Lovely Runner
A fan travels back in time to save her idol.
The 2024 South Korean drama Lovely Runner, with Byeon Woo-seok and Kim Hye-yoon, adapts the web novel Tomorrow's Best, also released as a webtoon by Doong Doong. It aired on tvN and streams on TVING, U-Next, Vidio, Viki, and Viu.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Time slip
- Romantic comedy
- Fantasy
- Based on
- Tomorrow's Best, Kim Bbang
- Developer
- CJ ENM Studios (planning)
- Writer
- Lee Si-eun
- Director
- Yoon Jong-ho; Kim Tae-yeop
- Starring
- Byeon Woo-seok
- Kim Hye-yoon
- Song Geon-hee
- Lee Seung-hyub
- Music
- Kim Jung-ha; Choi In-young
- Opening theme
- "You & I" (Inst.), Eclipse
Facts from the source article.
Cast and characters
Byeon Woo-seok portrays Ryu Sun-jae, a top star who was a former swimmer turned singer of the band Eclipse and actor. Kim Hye-yoon plays Im Sol, who gave up her dreams of becoming a film director after a 2008 accident and became a devoted fan of Sun-jae and Eclipse. Song Geon-hee appears as Kim Tae-seong, an ulzzang who was the bassist of Eclipse in high school. Sol's family includes her mother Park Bok-soon, a resilient single mother running a struggling DVD store; her grandmother Jung Mal-ja; and her older brother Im Geum, an aspiring actor who faces repeated audition rejections. Sol's best friend is Lee Hyun-joo, described as bold, sharp, and stubborn. Sun-jae's circle includes his best friend Baek In-hyuk, the leader and guitarist of Eclipse; his father Ryu Geun-deok, owner of the Galbit House; agency CEO Representative Kim; and manager Park Dong-suk. Tae-seong's father is Detective Kim, a veteran detective with 20 years of experience, and his friend is Cha Yi-seul. Other band members include drummer Hyun-soo and bassist Jay. Jagam High School students include Kim Hyung-gu, a swimming club member and Sun-jae's self-proclaimed rival; Choi Hyun-gu, Sun-jae's friend; and Coach Ahn. Additional characters include Tae-seong's ex-girlfriend Choi Ga-hyun, taxi driver Kim Young-Soo, cinema employee Choi Jeong-hoon, swimmer Park Tae-hwan, Girls' Generation member Kwon Yu-ri, a radio DJ, Heavenly Granny, and Park Do-jun.
Production
The series was originally published as a web novel on KakaoPage between July and September 2020, written by Kim Bbang, and later adapted into a webtoon by illustrator Doong Doong in September 2021. It is directed by Yoon Jong-ho, who co-directed Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, My Holo Love, and Flower of Evil, and written by Lee Si-eun, known for True Beauty. The series was previously titled Time Walking on Memory. Writer Lee Si-eun stated that the character Im Sol was created with actress Kim Hye-yoon in mind. The series took three years to produce and was offered to several other actors before Byeon Woo-seok accepted the role. Kim Hye-yoon and Byeon Woo-seok were reported to be in discussions on March 28, 2023, and their casting was confirmed on July 19 by tvN's production team. Song Geon-hee was confirmed on July 27, and Lee Seung-hyub's participation was confirmed on July 31. Yang Hyuk also joined the cast. Filming began in the second half of 2023.
Release
Originally slated for late 2023, the show got bumped to early 2024 after tvN shuffled its Monday-Tuesday schedule. The network locked in an April release during a January 18, 2024 conference. It finally hit screens on April 8, 2024, streaming on TVING in Korea, U-Next in Japan, Vidio in Indonesia, plus Viki and Viu in certain areas. Then on July 15, 2024, word came that Netflix would carry it in some regions starting August 1, 2024.
Reception
Despite modest viewership ratings, Lovely Runner received positive reviews from audiences and contributed to Byeon Woo-seok's rise to stardom while solidifying Kim Hye-yoon's reputation. Film critic Jung Duk-hyun praised Kim's acting in her role as Im Sol. The Straits Times gave the series four out of five stars, calling the love story captivating and the plot multi-layered. Time Magazine praised the drama as one of the best K-dramas of 2024, commending its use of familiar genres to craft a thrillingly unexpected story.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who created Lovely Runner?
Lovely Runner was created by CJ ENM Studios (planning).
How many episodes of Lovely Runner are there?
Lovely Runner has 16 episodes.
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