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Seoul International Drama Awards 2025 winners announced

Published: 16 Sep. 2025, 14:02

LIM JEONG-WON
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Actors Ju Ji-hoon and IU [SEOUL DRAMA AWARDS]

Actors Ju Ji-hoon and IU won the Best Actor and Best Actress awards, respectively, in the K-Drama category at the Seoul International Drama Awards 2025, the organizing committee announced Tuesday. The winners were chosen from 276 entries across 50 countries and 409 individual submissions.

The competition was divided into three categories: International Competition, K-Drama and International Invitation. Seven works and 16 individuals received awards.

The ceremony’s highest prize, the Golden Bird Award, went to actor-director Ben Stiller for season two of “Severance” (2022-) which also secured the Best Screenwriter Award for Dan Erickson. The jury praised the series' inventive take on modern corporate dystopia through the lens of "memory-severance" surgery.

Netflix’s "Adolescence" emerged as a major winner, taking the Grand Prize, Best Director and Best Actor awards in the international competition category. Its raw depiction of youth violence, gender conflict and cyberbullying earned critical acclaim, with newcomer Owen Cooper recognized for Best Actor and Philip Barantini honored for Best Director.

In the K-Drama category, Best Drama Awards went to Netflix titles "The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call" and "When Life Gives You Tangerines." Ju Ji-hoon and IU won the actor prizes for their performances in these works, underscoring the strength of this year’s Korean productions.

Drama series that won at this year's Seoul Drama Awards [SEOUL DRAMA AWARDS]

Other highlights included Best Original Soundtrack, awarded to singer Youngtak for their remake of "Unpredictable Life," a track from KBS weekend drama "Four Eagle Brothers," which was praised for adding depth to emotional scenes.

The Best Actress Award in the international competition was shared by Cate Blanchett for "Disclaimer" (2024) and Kim Min-ha for the second season of "Pachinko" (2022-2024). Celebrated director Hirokazu Kore-eda was also recognized for "Asura."

Meanwhile, CJ ENM’s "The Son" won Best Single Drama, with its story of a man confronting the truth and fatherhood through a virtual reality mission.

The 20th Seoul International Drama Awards will take place on Oct. 2 at the KBS Hall in Seoul. The ceremony will air globally on SBS and stream live on the event’s official YouTube channel. A red carpet will precede the broadcast, featuring both Korean and international guests.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]