Actor Ji Sung and Park Hee-soon clash head-on over "justice."
MBC's new Friday-Saturday drama Judge Lee Han-young, set to premiere Jan. 2, 2026, written by Kim Kwang-min and directed by Lee Jae-jin and Park Mi-yeon, is a justice-restoration drama about corrupt judge Lee Han-young, who lived as a slave to a giant law firm and returns 10 years to the past to punish great evils through new choices.
Ji Sung plays Lee Han-young, who returns from being a "corrupt judge" to his days as a sole judge in the past, and Park Hee-soon plays Kang Shin-jin, the chief criminal presiding judge racing toward the top tier of power.
Following the previously released solo stills of the two actors, the production of Judge Lee Han-young released a two-shot still of the pair today (27th), further raising the tension of the drama.
The Lee Han-young played by Ji Sung was used as Haenal Law Firm's "servant judge," faced an unjust situation, and, returning 10 years to his time as a sole judge at the Chungnam District Court, begins a second life. Determined this time not to waver and to make the right choices, he moves toward justice, but Kang Shin-jin firmly blocks his path.
By contrast, Kang Shin-jin, played by Park Hee-soon, is an ambitious figure who spares no means to reach the pinnacle of the judiciary. To complete his plan, he reaches out to the conspicuous judge Lee Han-young, but the Lee Han-young who returned 10 years does not reveal awareness of his intentions and quietly watches. Even during a peaceful meal, their gazes on each other reveal different inner motives, creating taut tension.
In this way, the two men, who pursue different notions of justice, are expected to raise the drama's tension by building a precarious relationship that crosses the line between ally and enemy. Expectations are particularly focused on what kind of synergy and emotional ripples will result from the face-off between Ji Sung and Park Hee-soon.
Judge Lee Han-young is based on the work of the same name that recorded 11.81 million views as a web novel and 90.66 million views as a webtoon, totaling 100.247 million views. Director Lee Jae-jin, who has shown sensitive directing through The Banker, The Spy Who Loved Me, and Motel California, joins forces with director Park Mi-yeon and writer Kim Kwang-min.
[Photo] Provided by MBC.
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