Disney+ is betting big on a local take of a very American drama. The streamer has approved a Korean-language remake of The Americans, to be called The Koreans. This version moves the spy couple from Cold War suburbs to early 1990s South Korea, with two elite North Korean agents living undercover as a middle-class husband and wife.

What the show is about

The Koreans follows a seemingly ordinary family during a period of rapid change in South Korea. On the surface they are typical neighbors and parents. Underneath both parents are elite North Korean spies who are quietly working to subvert the South. Expect a blend of espionage, family drama, and the messy emotions that come when loyalty, identity, and love collide, while a relentless Korean counterintelligence officer closes in.

Who is involved

  • Lee Byung-hun plays one half of the undercover couple. He is one of Korea's biggest stars, known for his breakthrough in Joint Security Area, an international profile boosted by roles like the villain in Squid Game, and a recent lead turn in No Other Choice.
  • Han Ji-min co-stars as the other parent and fellow spy.
  • Lee Hee-joon has been cast in a major role, details not yet disclosed.
  • The adaptation is written by Park Eun-kyo, who co-wrote Bong Joon-ho's Mother and contributed to the Disney+ series Made in Korea.
  • Ahn Gil-ho, the director behind the Netflix hit The Glory, will helm the series.

How this came together

Eric Schrier, Disney's head of international local originals, says he was initially cautious about reworking a show he helped develop. He knows the original The Americans well, and he understood fans' protective instincts. The concept won him over after the Korean team showed how transplanting the story to a still-divided peninsula could yield powerful, culturally resonant drama. This project started from local creative relationships in Korea, not from a corporate order to mine existing intellectual property.

Creative approach

Unlike the U.S. TV model with rotating writers and directors, Disney says The Koreans will follow the Korean production custom of keeping the same writer and director across episodes. The goal is to make a cohesive, local-language series that feels authentic to Korean audiences.

Why Disney is pushing this

Carol Choi, Disney's executive vice president for content strategy and marketing in the Asia-Pacific region, highlighted two selling points: the strong family and couple dynamics at the show's core, and the casting of Lee Byung-hun. Those elements are expected to help the series connect both inside Korea and across nearby Asian markets where Disney+ is expanding.

Schrier framed the move as part of a wider push to accelerate local-language production in South Korea, Japan, and Australia. The focus will be on adult-oriented general entertainment produced for local audiences, while Disney's global franchises remain a complementary offering.

Connections to the original

The original The Americans, created by Joe Weisberg and run with Joel Fields, starred Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys as KGB spies passing as an American couple. That series ran six seasons from 2013 to 2018, received 18 Emmy nominations and won four awards, and remains highly regarded.

Schrier says he spoke with Weisberg, Fields, Russell, and Rhys about the Korean remake. They were supportive and gave their blessing. Weisberg and Fields chose not to be directly involved, reportedly for emotional reasons, but they expressed interest in visiting the sets.

Production scale and what to expect next

Disney calls this one of the largest budgets for its Asian originals so far, and it is the company's first local-language adaptation of one of its scripted hits. The production timeline and release date have not been announced. For now, the project is positioned as a high-profile local drama meant to pull both domestic viewers and regional audiences.

In short, Disney+ is taking a well-known American espionage template, relocating it to a Korean moment of political and cultural change, and investing serious resources into making it feel local and specific. If the series delivers on its promise, expect tense spycraft, family scenes that cut deep, and a star turn from Lee Byung-hun.