The discussion comes as Netflix faces renewed scrutiny from investors following a recent decline in its U.S. share price. The company’s stock fell after its fourth-quarter profit outlook came in below Wall Street expectations and Netflix lowered its 2026 advertising revenue forecast.
The stock movement is unrelated to Tantara, but the timing has put additional attention on the scale of Netflix’s spending on major original productions.
According to Korean media reports citing industry sources, Tantara is believed to have cost around ₩80 billion to produce.
Set against South Korea’s entertainment industry from the 1960s through the 1980s, the period drama follows people who come from difficult circumstances and pursue success in show business.
Song Hye-kyo plays Min-ja, who grows up in poverty before entering the music industry. Gong Yoo stars as Dong-gu, her childhood friend who remains at her side as they pursue their ambitions together.
Kim Seol-hyun plays Min-hui, a singer whose relationship with Min-ja becomes complicated, while Cha Seung-won portrays Seok Gil-yeo, a leading composer capable of turning rookie singers into stars.
Written by Noh Hee-kyung and directed by Lee Yoon-jung, the series is scheduled to premiere worldwide on Netflix on December 11.
The reported budget sparked debate on TheQoo, where some users questioned why a character-driven period drama would require such a large investment. Others argued that the scale was more understandable given the lengthy production, period setting and size of the project.
Several commenters also debated whether a story centered on Korea’s entertainment industry from several decades ago would connect with international audiences, while others said Netflix could ultimately decide for itself how much it was willing to spend.
Netizen Reactions
The sampled comments were mixed between skepticism over the reported ₩80 billion budget and users arguing that the cost was understandable for a lengthy period production.
1. Apparently ₩60 billion for When Life Gives You Tangerines was considered cost-effective by Netflix, so ₩80 billion would probably still fall into the cost-effective range for them.
2. Even if it’s a period drama, with Noh Hee-kyung I thought it would basically feel like filming a slice-of-life drama. Why is the budget so high?
3. ₩80 billion for a Noh Hee-kyung drama...
4. It has a lot of episodes. It’s 22 episodes and a period drama, so of course the production costs would be around that much ㅋㅋ It’s Netflix’s money, so Netflix can decide what to do with it. It’s funny seeing people worry about it.
5. Netflix can worry about its own money. I’m just concerned about Noh Hee-kyung ㅋㅋㅋ Just how calm, calm, calm, calm, calm is this going to be?
6. The subject matter is the ’70s and ’80s. There’s no way that’s going to work globally...
7. ₩80 billion for a Noh Hee-kyung drama???? Did they spend it all on the actors’ appearance fees?
8. Interesting... With that kind of budget they must be aiming globally, but don’t period dramas usually have a harder time globally? Especially with Noh Hee-kyung on top of that.
9. Writer Noh Hee-kyung has artistic quality, but her mass appeal and commercial success can be a little uncertain—yet they invested ₩80 billion? Netflix really is something else.
10. It’s not a war drama or a fantasy series that needs tons of CG, so how does a story about entertainers cost ₩80 billion? Did they gold-plate the sets or something? It’s surprising they’d make an investment like that when none of Noh Hee-kyung’s works have been massive hits.
0 Comments