Why Korea's 2025 Award Season Felt Awkward for Everyone

The Awards Nobody Really Wanted to Talk About

Something about Korea’s 2025 TV awards season felt off — and not in a scandalous, headline-grabbing way. It was quieter than that. Awkward in a way that made viewers pause and wonder why the applause felt thinner than usual. As :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}, :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}, and :contentReference[oaicite:2]{index=2} wrapped up their ceremonies, the reactions online weren’t outrage or celebration — they were confusion.

Even some of the winners seemed unsure how to feel. When :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3} accepted MBC’s Grand Prize for :contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4}, his response was openly hesitant, closer to disbelief than triumph. When the person holding the trophy looks surprised rather than proud, it signals something deeper than personal modesty. It suggests the awards themselves no longer carry the certainty they once did.

What Actually Went Wrong

Here's the thing that's been stressing everyone out: there just weren't any breakout hits this year on broadcast TV. Like actually none. The dramas people were watching? They're mostly on Netflix, YouTube, or other streaming platforms. Regular TV drama viewership keeps dropping, and it shows.

Think about it. Awards are supposed to celebrate the year's biggest, most talked-about moments. But this year, the networks literally had nothing dominating the conversation. So when they had to hand out awards anyway, it felt forced and random.

MBC's Award Pick Made Nobody Happy

MBC giving the Grand Prize to Seo Kang-joon for Undercover High School was like... okay but why though? The drama wasn't a major hit. It had solid viewership, sure, but nothing that made you go "oh THAT makes sense for the biggest award of the year." Even Seo himself looked uncomfortable accepting it, which tells you everything about how unconvincing the choice felt.

KBS Did the Laziest Thing Possible

KBS literally gave their Grand Prize to TWO people. :contentReference[oaicite:5]{index=5} and :contentReference[oaicite:6]{index=6} shared the award for :contentReference[oaicite:7]{index=7}. This is the awards equivalent of when a teacher says "everyone gets a participation trophy." It waters down the entire meaning of the award. Like, if two people won, neither person really won, right? The drama did get 21.9% viewership which is pretty solid, but not "split the biggest award" solid.

Having a co-Grand Prize winner basically screams "we couldn't decide because nothing was special enough," and that's not the vibe you want for your most prestigious award.

SBS at Least Had a Backup Plan

SBS gave their Grand Prize to :contentReference[oaicite:8]{index=8} for :contentReference[oaicite:9]{index=9}, which at least makes sense since it's part of a series people actually care about. But here's the problem: they had to fall back on a sequel to make their awards look legitimate. Like, where are the new breakout dramas?

Even worse, SBS handed out eight awards to new actors and supporting actors. Eight. That volume alone makes each one feel less meaningful, and it weakens the prestige of the entire ceremony.

Why This Matters for K-Drama Fans

This whole situation is basically telling us that broadcast television isn't the main event anymore. The people producing, directing, and acting for regular TV are working harder but getting less cultural impact than they used to. Everything worth watching is moving to streaming platforms.

The awards ceremonies are starting to feel like mandatory company year-end parties that nobody actually wanted to attend. They're going through the motions instead of celebrating actual achievements.

What Should Happen Next

For these awards to matter again, the networks need to actually make dramas worth celebrating. The problem isn't the awards ceremonies themselves. The problem is that broadcast TV needs hits.

Are we gonna see that change happen in 2026? Honestly, we'll have to wait and see. But if next year's awards feel this awkward too, it might be time for broadcast networks to accept that the game has completely changed.