The 2026 APAN Star Awards will take place on December 23 at the Sangmyung Art Center’s Gyedang Hall in Seoul, the Korea Entertainment Management Association announced on October 30. The ceremony will air live on tvN, bringing South Korea’s only all-platform drama awards back to television screens just two days before Christmas Eve.
Organized by the Korea Entertainment Management Association and managed by Studio Glovik and Guardian Company, the APAN Star Awards stands apart from other Korean drama honors by accepting entries from every corner of the industry — public broadcasters, cable channels, general service channels, OTT platforms, and web dramas. That means a Netflix original competes on the same stage as a KBS weekend drama or a TVING web series, a distinction that has defined the awards since its launch.
A Date and Venue Set for Late December
The December 23 date places the ceremony firmly in the year-end awards season, arriving after the 2025 APAN Star Awards in December last year and before the calendar turns. The Sangmyung Art Center’s Gyedang Hall in Seoul serves as the venue. Unlike the cavernous arenas sometimes used for major televised awards, the Gyedang Hall offers a more intimate setting, one that keeps the focus on the actors and the productions being honored. The space has hosted cultural and academic events, and its size gives the ceremony a closer, less formal atmosphere for the attendees and the live audience inside the hall.
What Makes the APAN Star Awards Different
The APAN Star Awards is not limited to one network or one streaming service. Its scope covers terrestrial broadcast, comprehensive programming channels, cable, OTT, and web dramas. A short-form web series released on YouTube can sit in the same competition as a big-budget Netflix production. This all-inclusive rule has made the ceremony a genuine reflection of what Korean drama audiences are actually watching, regardless of where they watch it.
That breadth carries weight for fans who follow dramas across multiple platforms. A tvN series, a JTBC show, a Disney+ original, and a Coupang Play exclusive all fall under the same judging umbrella. The result is a awards show that tracks the real viewing habits of the audience rather than the priorities of a single broadcaster.
tvN to Broadcast the Ceremony Live
tvN will carry the 2026 APAN Star Awards live. The network’s involvement gives the ceremony a nationwide television home in South Korea. For international viewers, no official English-language live stream has been confirmed at the time of the announcement. In past years, platforms such as Viki and Kocowa have made APAN Star Awards content available with English subtitles after the live broadcast, though those arrangements vary by year and region. Viewers outside Korea should check those platforms closer to December 23 for confirmed availability.
The live broadcast on tvN follows the pattern of recent APAN ceremonies, which have aired on the network and drawn attention for their red-carpet arrivals and stage presentations.
Grand Prize Winners Show the Award’s Reach
The APAN Star Awards’ Grand Prize, known as the Daesang, has gone to a cross-section of Korean acting talent over the years. Past winners include Son Hyun-joo, Song Hye-kyo, Jo In-sung, Kim Soo-hyun, Song Joong-ki, Lee Byung-hun, Hyun Bin, Lee Jun-ho, Kim Tae-ri, and IU. The list spans generations and genres, from melodrama to action to slice-of-life storytelling.
At the 2025 APAN Star Awards, IU took the Daesang for her role in “When Life Gives You Tangerines.” The drama also earned Drama of the Year at the same ceremony, and Lee Jun-ho collected three honors, including a Top Excellence award. Those results set a recent benchmark for what the awards recognize: performances that connect with viewers across age groups and platforms.
Categories and How the Awards Are Structured
The APAN Star Awards hands out a Grand Prize to one actor or actress for the year’s standout performance. Beyond the Daesang, the ceremony includes Best Actor and Best Actress honors across different categories, Supporting Actor and Supporting Actress awards, Newcomer awards, a Popularity Award, Best Director, and Best Screenwriter. The exact category breakdown for the 2026 edition has not been published at the time of the date and venue announcement. Organizers have said that details on categories, nominees, and the ceremony’s host will be shared later.
A Ceremony That Follows the Drama Calendar
The timing of the 2026 APAN Star Awards on December 23 means it arrives near the end of a busy Korean drama year. Productions that aired or premiered in 2026 across broadcast, cable, and streaming fall into the eligibility window. The ceremony’s late-December slot also gives it a place among the final television events of the year, after the major drama slates have wrapped and before the industry turns to the new year.
Streaming and International Access
International viewers have followed the APAN Star Awards through a mix of legal streaming options in recent years. The confirmed live broadcast for 2026 is tvN in South Korea. For audiences in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, India, and other global markets, official English-subtitled coverage has historically appeared on platforms such as Viki and Kocowa after the ceremony. No global live-streaming partner has been formally announced for 2026. Fans outside Korea should rely on official platform announcements rather than unconfirmed social media schedules.
The Organizers Behind the Event
The Korea Entertainment Management Association hosts the ceremony. Studio Glovik and Guardian Company handle the organizing and production. The association’s involvement ties the awards to the management side of the Korean entertainment industry, while the production partners bring experience in staging televised events. The combination has kept the APAN Star Awards running as a fixture on the drama calendar.
What the December 23 Date Means for the Drama Industry
A December 23 ceremony places the APAN Star Awards in the same week as Christmas, a period when television viewership patterns shift and year-end specials compete for attention. The date also comes after the 2025 APAN Star Awards, which were held in December last year and saw IU take the top prize. By returning in the final stretch of 2026, the ceremony closes out the drama year with a live television event rather than a pre-recorded presentation.
For actors and production teams, the APAN Star Awards offers a stage that does not require a single network affiliation. A performer from a small web drama and a star from a major OTT series share the same eligibility pool, which is not the case at every Korean awards show. That structure has given the APAN Star Awards a distinct identity since its beginning.
Key Details at a Glance
- Event: 2026 APAN Star Awards
- Date: December 23, 2026
- Venue: Sangmyung Art Center’s Gyedang Hall, Seoul
- Live Broadcast: tvN (South Korea)
- Host: Korea Entertainment Management Association
- Organizers: Studio Glovik, Guardian Company
- Eligibility: Dramas from terrestrial, cable, comprehensive programming, OTT, and web platforms
- 2025 Grand Prize Winner: IU for “When Life Gives You Tangerines”
- Nominees, Host, and Category Details: To be announced later
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Stay with VvipTimes for more updates on the 2026 APAN Star Awards as nominee lists and broadcast details become available.
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