[HanCinema's News] Disney+ Aims for Noir Market With "Vigilante" Following up "The Worst of Evil"

The premiere of "Vigilante" on November 8th continues a curious trend for Disney+ in the South Korean market. The international streaming giant appears to be trying to corner the market on noir titles. The genre is not an especially popular one there, but the trend is unmistakeable. "The Worst of Evil" had only finished airing a couple of weeks prior, and earlier this year Disney+ completed a second season of "Big Bet" despite relatively little interest.

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Because Disney+ does not publicly release its streaming data, the motivation and efficacy of this trend is difficult to guess. But it may just boil down to Disney+ needing to do something that no one else in South Korea is doing. The value of Disney as a brand in South Korea is of limited use compared to other regions. Other companies have childrens' cartoons, for example, and Marvel franchises have faced diminishing returns with the strongest fans being most likely to watch them in theaters.

Noir is relatively unexposed by comparison. No one is particularly well-known for making noir titles, although it is a genre of particular interest to people inside the production industry. "The Worst of Evil" appealed to Ji Chang-wook and "Vigilante" to Nam Joo-hyuk in part because the leading stars do not often have opportunities to headline gritty crime dramas. Both men are generally popular as compelling romantic leading men.

It is not clear whether their fans have followed suit, however. Besides that, noir isn't too far off from the rest of the Disney+ brand in South Korea. "Moving" for example may be an adaptation of a supernatural comic book, yet its vibe is closer to that of these noir titles than the typical Marvel film. Still, the upcoming Disney+ slate has noticeably more sentimental films than what the streaming platform has distributed in recent memory, so this trend may yet be just a blip.

Written by William Schwartz

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"Vigilante" is directed by Choi Jeong-yeol, written by Lee Min-seob, and features Nam Joo-hyuk, Yoo Ji-tae, Lee Joon-hyuk, Kim So-jin, Lee Do-goon, Ahn Seong-bong. Broadcasting information in Korea: 2023/11/08~Now airing, Wed on Disney+.

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"The Worst of Evil" is directed by Han Dong-wook, Park Geun-buem, written by Jang Min-seok, and features Ji Chang-wook, Wi Ha-jun, Lim Se-mi, BIBI, Im Sung-jae, Cha Rae-hyung. Broadcasting information in Korea: 2023/09/27~2023/10/25, Wed on Disney Plus.