''Alchemy of Souls'' () is a

South Korean television series Korean dramas (; RR: ''Han-guk deurama''), more popularly known as K-dramas, are television series in the Korean language, made in South Korea. They are popular worldwide, especially in Asia, partially due to the spread of Korean popular cultu ...

starring

Lee Jae-wook Lee Jae-wook (; born May 10, 1998) is a South Korean actor and model. He made his acting debut in the science fiction thriller '' Memories of the Alhambra'' (2018–2019) and gained popularity after starring in the office romance '' Search: WWW' ...

Jung So-min Jung So-min (; born Kim Yoon-ji on March 16, 1989) is a South Korean actress. She made her acting debut in 2010 with a supporting role in the television series ''Bad Guy''. She is known for her leading role in her 2010 TV series ''Playful Kiss'', ...

, Go Yoon-jung, and

Hwang Min-hyun Hwang Min-hyun (; born August 9, 1995), known mononymously as Minhyun, is a South Korean singer, songwriter and actor. He began his professional career in 2012 as a lead vocalist of the South Korean boy group NU'EST. In 2017, he participated in s ...

. Written by the

Hong sisters Hong Jung-eun (born 1974) and Hong Mi-ran (born 1977), collectively known as the Hong sisters (), are South Korean television screenwriters currently managed by Studio Dragon. Together, they have written popular romantic-comedies, notably '' M ...

, it depicts the stories of young mages dealing with heaven and earth. It premiered on

tvN TVN may refer to: * TVN (Australian TV channel), a former horse racing channel * Televisión Nacional de Chile, a public broadcaster * TVN (Indonesia), a former television station; predecessor of Rajawali Televisi * TVN (Norway), or TVNorge, a comm ...

on June 18, 2022, and aired every Saturday and Sunday at 21:10 ( KST). It is also available for streaming on

TVING TVING () is a South Korean online streaming service operated by TVING Corporation, a joint venture of CJ E&M (CJ Group), Naver and JTBC. It is a platform that streams dramas, entertainment shows, exclusive television films and specials. Histor ...

and

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

in selected regions. The series is divided into two parts: Part 1 aired from June 18 to August 28, 2022 for 20 episodes, while Part 2 (''Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow'') is currently in production for 10 episodes and is scheduled to premiere on December 10, 2022.

Synopsis

Set in a fictional country called Daeho that does not exist in history or on maps, the series is about the love and growth of young mages as they overcome their twisted fates due to a forbidden magic spell known as the "alchemy of souls", which allows souls to switch bodies. It follows the story of an elite warrior named Nak-su whose soul is accidentally trapped inside the weak body of Mu-deok. She becomes entangled with Jang Uk who is from a noble family, and becomes his servant.

Cast

Main

as Jang Uk ** Park Sang-hoon as young Jang Uk *

as Mu-deok / Nak-su (after alchemy of souls) / Jin Bu-yeon (Mu-deok's birth name) * Go Yoon-jung as Nak-su (before alchemy of souls) / Cho Yeong (real name) ** Gu Yoo-jung as young Nak-su *

as Seo Yul ** Moon Seong-hyun as young Seo Yul

Supporting

People around Jang Uk

Oh Na-ra Oh Na-ra (, is a South Korean television and film actress, known for her roles in ''Yong-pal'', ''Hyde, Jekyll, Me'', ''Flowers of the Prison'', '' Man to Man'', ''The Lady in Dignity'', and ''Sky Castle ''Sky Castle'' (; stylized as ''SK ...

as Maidservant Kim *

Joo Sang-wook Joo Sang-wook (; born July 18, 1978) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in generational saga ''Giant'', medical drama '' Good Doctor'', romantic comedy ''Cunning Single Lady'', ''Birth of a Beauty'', and crime procedural ''S ...

as Jang Gang * Bae Gang-hee as Do-hwa

Songrim

Yoo Jun-sang Yoo Jun-sang (born November 28, 1969) is a South Korean actor and singer. Yoo is best known for starring in the Hong Sang-soo films '' Ha Ha Ha'' (2010), '' The Day He Arrives'' (2011), and '' In Another Country'' (2012). He was also praised for ...

as Park Jin *

Yoo In-soo Yoo In-soo (, born March 25, 1998) is a South Korean actor. He is known for his roles in dramas such as ''Strong Girl Bong-soon'' (2017)'', Gangnam Beauty'' (2018)'','' ''At a Distance, Spring Is Green'' (2021), ''All of Us Are Dead'' (2022), a ...

as Park Dang-gu *

Lee Ha-yool Lee Ha-yool (born Lee Jong-ho on May 20, 1987) is a South Korean actor. Filmography Television series Films Music video Awards and nominations References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Ha-yool 1987 births Living people Pe ...

as Sang-ho

Sejukwon

* Lee Do-kyung as Heo Yeom * Hong Seo-hee as Heo Yun-ok * Jung Ji-an as Soon-yi * as Physician Seo

Cheonbugwan

Jo Jae-yoon Jo Jae-yoon (born September 15, 1974) is a South Korean actor. He made his acting debut in 2003 and has since starred as a supporting actor in numerous films and television series, including '' The Man from Nowhere'' (2010), ''The Chaser'' (2012 ...

as Jin Mu *

Choi Ji-ho Choi Ji-ho (born November 25, 1980) is a South Korean actor and model. He began his entertainment career in 2003 as part of Model Line's stable, walking the runways for Gucci Gucci (, ; ) is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house based i ...

as Gil-ju * Cha Yong-hak as Yeom-su

Jinyowon

Park Eun-hye Park Eun-hye (born February 21, 1977) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for starring in ''Dae Jang Geum'', which led to her popularity in China. She also played the lead role in the Taiwanese drama, ''Silence (TV series), Silence'', ...

as Jin Ho-kyung * Joo Seok-tae as Jin Woo-tak *

Arin The American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN) is the regional Internet registry for Canada, the United States, and many Caribbean and North Atlantic islands. ARIN manages the distribution of Internet number resources, including IPv4 and IPv ...

as Jin Cho-yeon * Yoon Hae-bin as young Jin Bu-yeon

Royal family

Shin Seung-ho Shin Seung-ho (born 11 November 1995) is a South Korean actor and model. As one of the leads, Shin received the most attention after appearing on ''A-Teen'' (2018). He is also known for appearing on ''Love Alarm'' (2019) and ''Alchemy of Souls ...

as Go Won * Choi Kwang-il as Go Soon * Kang Kyung-heon as Seo Ha-sun *

Park Byung-eun Park Byung-eun (born 14 July 1977) is a South Korean actor. Personal life Park majored in drama at Chung-Ang University. Park was set to debut with 90s South Korean boy group Taesaja in 1997, but gave up due to him feeling that he cannot sing ...

as Go Seong * Lee Ki-seop as Eunuch Oh * Jeong Ji-sun as Eunuch Kim

Chwiseollu

Park So-jin Park So-jin (born May 21, 1986), better known mononymously as Sojin, is a South Korean singer and actress. She is best known as the leader of South Korean girl group Girl's Day. Early life and education Park So-jin was born on May 21, 1986, ...

as Joo-wol

Others

* Im Chul-soo as Lee Cheol (Master Lee) * Seo Hye-won as So-yi *

Woo Hyun Woo Hyun (born 1964) is a South Korean actor, and former democracy activist. Filmography Film Television series Variety show References External links * Living people People from Gwangju South Korean male television actors So ...

as Monk Ho-yeon * Lee Ji-hoo as Cha Beom * Lee Bong-jun as Gu Hyo * Joo Min-soo as Han Yeol

Extended

Jeon Hye-won Jeon Hye-weon (; born April 02, 1998) is a South Korean actress. She is known for roles in television dramas such as '' Our Beloved Summer'' (2021–2022) and '' Love (ft. Marriage and Divorce)'' (2021). Filmography Film Television ser ...

as Ae-hyang * Yoon Seo-hyun as Cho Chung * Shim Jae-hyun as a thug *

Do Sang-woo Do Sang-woo (born December 25, 1987) is a South Korean actor and model. Do has been gaining attention after starring as Gong Hyo-jin's character's ex-boyfriend in the television series ''It's Okay, That's Love ''It's Okay, That's Love'' () i ...

as Seo Yoon-oh

Special appearances

Yeom Hye-ran Yeom Hye-ran (born October 30, 1976) is a South Korean actress. Career Yeom began her career in theater in 1999 and made her screen debut in 2003. She has since played supporting roles in film and television, notably ''Dear My Friends'' (2016 ...

as a mysterious middle-aged woman * *

Kim Hyun-sook Kim Hyun-sook (born October 16, 1978) is a South Korean actress and comedian. She is best known for playing the title character in ''Ugly Miss Young-ae'', a long-running sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational come ...

as Maidservant Park * Jang Sung-beom as Master Kang * Shim So-young as Shaman Choi

Production

Development

Preparations for the series, as well as program discussion with

, started in 2019 under the working title ''Can This Person Be Translated'' ().

Casting

In January 2021,

Park Hye-su Park Hye-su (; born November 24, 1994), also spelled as Park Hye-soo, is a South Korean actress and singer. She participated in ''K-pop Star 4'' as a contestant. Park rose to fame for her role in ''Hello, My Twenties!''. She took on her first le ...

's agency revealed that the actress auditioned for ''Alchemy of Souls''. In June, it was announced that actor

was offered a role in the series. The female lead role was first confirmed to be played by . However, in July 2021, she decided to leave the series after a mutual agreement with the production team. It was stated that although Park is a rookie actress, she prepared hard for the series, but felt a lot of pressure about playing the main character of a big project. The role was then offered to actress

. Jung and director Park Joon-hwa previously worked together in 2017 TV series ''

Because This Is My First Life ''Because This Is My First Life'' () is a 2017 South Korean television series starring Lee Min-ki and Jung So-min that explores different points of view on careers, relationships, marriage, and love. The series marks Lee Min-ki's first small scr ...

''. Line-up for the lead stars consisting of

, Jung So-min,

and

was officially announced by

on March 3, 2022. On March 21,

, Lee Do-kyung and Im Chul-soo were announced to have joined the cast.

Filming

In August 2021, production companies

Studio Dragon Studio Dragon Corporation () is a South Korean drama production, marketing and distribution company under CJ ENM's E&M division. It was established on May 3, 2016, as a spin-off from E&M Media Content. The company joined the KOSDAQ index of K ...

and High Quality signed an agreement with Mungyeong City to build a filming site in Maseong-myeon worth for the production of ''Alchemy of Souls''. On October 6, 2021, it was announced that filming of the series was canceled for that week after a staff member tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

on the morning of the 5th. All production crew members subsequently underwent

PCR test The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method widely used to rapidly make millions to billions of copies (complete or partial) of a specific DNA sample, allowing scientists to take a very small sample of DNA and amplify it (or a part of it) t ...

. Some staff members who were classified as close contacts went into self-quarantine, even though they tested negative for the contagion. It was reported that filming for the second part of the series had started by July 2022, and was scheduled to end sometime in the autumn.

Original soundtrack

The album peaked at number 18 on weekly

Circle Album Chart The Circle Album Chart, previously known as the Gaon Album Chart, is a record chart ranking the 100 most popular albums, extended plays and single albums in South Korea based on their pure sales. It is a part of the Circle Chart, previously know ...

and as of September 2022, 8,906 copies have been sold.Accumulated OST Album Sales: * *

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Viewership

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

External links

* * * * {{Works by Studio Dragon Korean-language television shows TVN (South Korean TV channel) television dramas Television shows written by the Hong sisters Television series by Studio Dragon South Korean fantasy television series South Korean romance television series South Korean historical television series South Korean action television series 2022 South Korean television series debuts Television productions suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic