Webtoon’s Studio N CEO on Educating the West About Webcomic IP

Even as Studio N scores hits on Netflix, Disney+ and Crunchyroll, earns Emmy nominations and breaks Korean box office records, its CEO says the company is still championing webcomic IP for much of the Western entertainment industry.

“Webcomics are still relatively new to many people in Western markets,” says Mikyung (Michelle) Kwon Variety. “As we work with global development leaders and distributors, we continue to teach them about the power of this format and the global fandoms that underpin our IP. Every time we have a successful project, our job becomes easier.”

Kwon is in Lille this week for Series Mania, where Studio N – the Korean production arm of Webtoon Entertainment – ​​makes its debut at the television festival with the world premiere of “The Legend of Kitchen Soldier,” the only Korean content screening at this year’s event. She will also participate in a Korea Special Session Panel on March 25 as Korea is celebrated as the Series Mania Forum’s first Country of Honor. But her ambitions extend far beyond the festival.

Kwon states that Korea has already established itself as a global tastemaker in beauty, fashion, technology and music, and that webcomics are “the next export from Korea that will have a significant global impact on the entertainment market.”

The argument Kwon makes is both structural and creative. Webtoon Entertainment’s platform ecosystem has approximately 160 million monthly active users, giving Studio N access to a pipeline of IP arriving with pre-existing, measurable fandoms. “Mobile, vertical comics are now the default comic format for a new generation of fans and creators,” she says. “These are visual stories, many have multiple seasons and arcs on our platform, and they come with existing fandoms. This is the perfect mix for franchise potential.”

That franchise logic is already playing out in the studio. Studio N’s Netflix series “Chicken Nugget” earned Webtoon Entertainment its first Emmy nomination when it was recognized in the comedy category at the 2025 International Emmy Awards. The studio’s 2025 film “My Daughter Is a Zombie,” adapted from a Webtoon title with more than 500 million views worldwide, became the highest-grossing Korean film of 2025 and the third highest-grossing film in Korea this year. Other titles include “True Beauty” on Crunchyroll, “Vigilante” on Disney+ and Netflix series including “The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call,” “Sweet Home” and “The 8 Show.” ‘Bloodhounds’ returns for a second season on Netflix on April 3.

The Series Mania premiere of “The Legend of Kitchen Soldier” – co-produced with CJ ENM’s Studio Dragon and adapted from a Webtoon title with more than 650 million views worldwide – is both a market launch and a proof of concept for Kwon. Starring Park Ji-hoon (“Weak Hero”), the series follows a military recruit whose life is turned upside down by a virtual quest system that turns him into a legendary army chef. The show will stream as an original on TVING in the first half of this year.

Kwon sees the premise of combining genres as representative of Studio N’s creative mandate. She says the ‘N’ in the studio’s name stands for ‘Next’. “People have seen a million different military movies,” she says. “But they’ve never seen one about a chef and his virtual quest. Just like our Emmy-nominated series ‘Chicken Nugget,’ about someone who turns into a chicken nugget. These are the kind of fantastic, creative and unexpected stories we’re excited to bring to the global entertainment marketplace.”

When selecting titles to adapt, Kwon describes balancing platform details with more fundamental creative questions. “Strong storytelling is always at the heart of our decisions about a story’s adaptability,” she says. “We’re adapting someone’s narrative universe so that both the webcomic creator and existing fans want to see something that does justice to the original webcomic.”

The studio is also keeping a close eye on the broader cultural moment. “Just a few days ago, ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ made history by bringing K-pop to the Oscars,” Kwon said. “K-content has never been bigger.” Whether that momentum translates into faster buy-in from Western partners, she suggests, may simply be a matter of gathering evidence. “We start with a foundation of fan awareness from our platforms, and that helps ensure our projects get hits with audiences around the world.”

Series Mania takes place from March 20 to 27 in Lille, France. The special Korea session, “Webtoon to Series: Adaptation and IP Expansion,” will take place on March 25 at the Louis Pasteur Auditorium.