The K2

Did You Know?

• The drama streamed internationally on Netflix with English subtitles as of 2023.
• Broadcasting rights were sold to Vietnam, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, China, Thailand, Israel and Greece.

Plot

A former Blackstone mercenary named Kim Je-ha was set up for the murder of his lover Raniya in Iraq, forcing him to flee. After returning to South Korea, he takes a bodyguard job from Choi Yoo-jin, the head of JSS Security and wife of presidential candidate Jang Se-joon. Je-ha accepts because Yoo-jin can provide the resources he needs to get revenge on Park Kwan-soo, the rival candidate he saw order Raniya’s death. His assignment is to protect Go An-na, Jang’s hidden daughter, who is constantly in danger from her stepmother Yoo-jin. An-na, isolated and lonely, grows to trust Je-ha, and they fall in love. This puts Je-ha in a conflict between working with Yoo-jin for his revenge and shielding An-na from Yoo-jin’s plans. Yoo-jin’s half-brother Choi Sung-won conspires with Park Kwan-soo, leading to the deaths of Jang Se-joon and Yoo-jin, but Sung-won is later killed by Yoo-jin’s loyal assistant Kim Dong-mi. Park hangs himself for his crimes, and Je-ha clears his name, achieving his revenge. He and An-na leave for another country. As An-na asks for his real name, the credits roll before he can answer.

Production

The drama was written by scriptwriter Jang Hyuk-rin, who wrote Yong-pal (2015), and directed by Kwak Jung-hwan of Neighborhood Hero (2016). Depicted with a bodyguard action theme, the drama utilized fighting techniques including systema, taekwondo, aikido, and jujutsu for its action scenes. It became the first Korean television drama to introduce the Bullet Time effect. The first script reading was held in August 2016 at the CJ E&M Center in Seoul, South Korea, with filming beginning in September. Some scenes, primarily in episodes 1 and 2, were filmed in Catalonia (including the mountain of Montserrat, the Monastery of Santes Creus in Aiguamúrcia), various places in Barcelona, Gaudí's Colònia Güell Crypt, and other locations in Spain (probably near Almería for the Iraq War desert locations). The closing scene of episode 16 was filmed at Barcelona's Turó de la Rovira hill. The rest of the series was filmed in Korea. Male lead Ji Chang-wook became the highest-paid actor for a tvN drama due to his casting; he performed all action stunts himself without a body double.