Kim Hye Soo and Cho Yeo Jeong lead a black comedy where an affair is only the start of much bigger problems.
A new Korean drama has arrived that turns the typical marriage story on its head. The Affair Was Just the Beginning premiered on July 31, 2026, on Coupang Play and is also available on Viki. The black comedy follows two neighboring families whose lives become tangled after an affair and an accident set off a chain of events.
The drama stars Kim Hye Soo (Unmasked) as Park Kyung Hee, a self-made interior design influencer and CEO. Kim Ji Hppn (The Haunted Palace, Dear X) plays her husband Lim Jae Hong, a small-time actor. Their neighbors are Cho Yeo Jeong (Parasite) as Ahn Soo Jung, an elegant dermatologist, and Kim Jae Chul as her husband Bo Sung, who is locked in a bitter divorce battle with her. The cast also includes Jeon Si Hyun as Kyung Hee’s daughter Ye Ji and Do Yeong Seo as Soo Jung’s daughter Min Seo.
A Story That Starts Where Most Dramas End
Most K-dramas build toward a happy ending where couples overcome obstacles together. This one does the opposite. It begins with what looks like a perfect life and then tears it apart.
Kyung Hee built her success from nothing. She started as an influencer documenting her family’s struggles in a flooding rooftop apartment and grew her channel to over 1 million subscribers. She became known as “Captain Park” and built a successful interior design business. Her family’s move to an upscale neighborhood should be the reward for all that hard work.
But their new neighbor Soo Jung is going through a messy divorce and custody battle. She resents the happy image Kyung Hee’s family projects. When Kyung Hee learns that Soo Jung can connect her to an important investor, she pushes her husband to get closer to their neighbor. That decision leads to complications no one expected.
“Edgy, playful, and oh so watchable, Coupang Play’s The Affair Was Just the Beginning sets a great tone with its first episode.”
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Strong Performances Drive the Drama
The cast has received significant praise for their work. Kim Hye Soo, who is celebrating the 40th anniversary of her film and TV debuts this year, delivers a performance that reviewers call “superb”. One review described her work as “a masterclass in acting,” noting how she shifts from a fake influencer smile to calculating eyes in a split second. She wears 17 different looks in the first episode alone.
Cho Yeo Jeong, known for her role in the Oscar-winning film Parasite, brings depth to the role of the cold, struggling dermatologist. Kim Ji Hun and Kim Jae Chul round out the main cast.
The drama is directed by Lee Chang-hee.
What Viewers Are Saying
The show has generated strong buzz since its debut. It reached number one on Coupang Play’s most popular titles after the first two episodes. It recorded a viewer rating of 4.6 on the platform. The drama also entered at number six on the K-Drama Buzz Watch chart with a 6.19% buzz share.
Early reviews have been largely positive. One critic called it “a brilliant dark comedy powered by Kim Hye-soo’s unmatched star power”. Another described it as “a humorous thriller that makes you laugh while keeping you engaged,” adding that “each actor is doing their jobs so phenomenally and the story so far is engaging”. The South China Morning Post called it “hugely entertaining” and said it “blows through the K-drama schedule like a fresh breeze, playfully toeing the line between titillation, black comedy and crime drama”.
The drama’s pacing has also been noted. Viewers have commented that the story moves quickly without dragging, slowly releasing clues for the audience to piece together.
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Where to Watch
The Affair Was Just the Beginning airs weekly on Coupang Play in South Korea at 8 p.m. KST. International viewers can watch the drama on Viki with subtitles. It is also available on Viu in select regions. Each episode runs approximately 45 minutes.
The series tells the story of two families brought together by circumstance and torn apart by secrets. What starts as a suspected affair quickly becomes something far more dangerous. As the tagline for the show puts it: “An affair would have been better”.
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