The Hong sisters (Korean: 홍자매) are two South Korean screenwriters: Hong Jung-eun (born 1974) and Hong Mi-ran (born 1977), known for writing popular romantic-comedy television series, notably My Girl (2005), You're Beautiful (2009), My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho (2010), The Greatest Love (2011), Master's Sun (2013), A Korean Odyssey (2017–2018), Hotel del Luna (2019), Alchemy of Souls (2022), its second part Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow (2022–2023), and Can This Love Be Translated? (2026).
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Career
Early career in variety television
Before transitioning to television drama, Hong Jung-eun and Hong Mi-ran worked as writers for variety programs. Hong Jung-eun began her career as an assistant writer at MBC TV in 1998, where she remained for eight years. Her credits at MBC include Sunday Sunday Night, People Looking for Laughter, and the re-enactment program Mysterious TV Surprise. Hong Mi-ran spent five years working as a variety writer, contributing to SBS TV's Columbus' Great Discovery and KBS2 TV's sitcom Run, My Mom.
Television screenwriting debut and early works
The Hong sisters made their television drama writing debut in 2005 with Sassy Girl Chun-hyang, a modern reinterpretation of the Korean folktale Chunhyangjeon. The series reimagined the protagonist as a assertive, headstrong character. The drama achieved commercial success throughout Asia. Their subsequent project, My Girl (2005), centered on a con artist who assumes the identity of a wealthy man's long-lost granddaughter, also proved successful. These early works contributed to the rise of their lead actors, including Han Chae-young, Jae Hee, Lee Da-hae, Lee Joon-gi, and Lee Dong-wook into household names and as prominent figures in the Korean Wave.
The Hongs' continued this success with Couple or Trouble (2006), a remake of the 1987 Hollywood film Overboard. The series starred Han Ye-seul an heiress suffering from amnesia who develops a relationship with a handyman played by Oh Ji-ho.
For Hong Gil-dong (2008), the writers based their protagonist on the fictional folk hero of the same name, a Joseon-era figure often compared to Robin Hood for stealing from the rich to provide for the poor. This Kang Ji-hwan and Sung Yu-ri, incorporated royal intrigue and romance alongside unconventional elements such as elaborate stunts, stylized costumes, slapstick humor, and anachronistic modern music. Although the series received average television ratings, it maintained strong popularity online and won Best Miniseries at the 2008 Roma Fiction Fest.
Television dramas with Pan Asian recognition
For its next production, the Hong sisters transitioned to a youth drama You're Beautiful (2009). Casting Jang Keun-suk and Park Shin-hye in a story about a naive nun who disguises herself as a male idol to join a boy band. While it did not achieve high domestic viewership ratings, it developed a significant cult following online and among international audiences. The series was broadcast across various Asian markets, including Japan, China, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the UAE, and the Philippines.In Japan, it achieved high ratings on Fuji Television, reportedly surpassing its competitors in the same timeslot. The series is believed to have overtaken the popularity of Winter Sonata, another popular Korean drama in Japan.
The series' soundtrack was a commercial success, selling 20,000 copies within its first week and topping various music charts, including Melon, Dosirak, and Mnet. By the end of 2011, the album had sold 57,000 copies in South Korea. The soundtrack was written and produced by Han Sung-ho, who also worked on drama Brilliant Legacy. The drama featured concert footage of the fictional group A.N.JELL, and it was reported that 25,000 fans attended a real-life mini-concert performed by the cast. Due to its pan-Asian success, the series was remade in Japan in 2011 as Ikemen desu ne and in Taiwan 2013 as Fabulous Boys.
In 2010, the Hong sisters subverted Korean mythology for their next drama, My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho. Departing from the traditional portrayal of the gumiho as a predatory femme fatale who consumes human livers, the series introduces a whimsical character (played by Shin Min-a) who is portrayed as a naive, endearing girl with a fondness for Korean beef. The plot follows an aspiring stuntman (played by Lee Seung-gi) who aids her in her quest to become human. The 16-episode series, directed by Boo Sung-chul, aired from August 11 to September 30, 2010, in SBS TV, recording a peak viewership rating of 19.9%.
The Hong sisters returned to the MBC TV in 2011 with The Greatest Love, which aired from May 4 to June 23. Directed by Park Hong-kyun and Lee Dong-yoon, the 16-episode series was set within the image-conscious world of entertainment and starred Cha Seung-won as the nation's most beloved actor Dokko Jin, who falls in love with a has-been pop singer Gu Ae-jung, portrayed by Gong Hyo-jin. The series consistently topped its time slot, reaching a peak viewership rating of 21.0%. It received significant critical acclaim, sweeping the 2011 MBC Drama Awards, including the Writer of the Year award for the Hong sisters, while Gong Hyo-jin secured the Best Actress title at the 2012 Baeksang Arts Awards.
Legal dispute over tvN drama A Korean Odyssey
In 2017, the Hong sisters ventured into cable television with their modern adaptation of the Chinese classic novel Journey to the West, titled A Korean Odyssey. The series featured Cha Seung-won, Lee Seung-gi, and Lee Hong-gi, all of whom had previously collaborated with the screenwriters. The project reunited the sisters with director Park Hong-kyun with whom they had worked on Warm and Cozy (2015) and The Greatest Love (2011). Directors Kim Jung-hyun and Kim Byung-soo later joined the production team.
A Korean Odyssey premiered on tvN on December 23, 2017, airing on Saturdays and Sundays. It immediately outperformed both cable and public broadcast channels in its time slot during its debut. While the series achieved a peak viewership rating of 6.9%, this figure was considered high for a cable production at the time, and the show notably set a new viewership record for tvN dramas within the 20 to 49 age demographic.
In May 2018, internet novelist Ttangyeol accused the Hong sisters of plagiarizing her work, Aeyugi. The Hong sisters denied the allegations, noting that the drama had been in development prior to the 2015 publication of Aeyugi and that both works were independently derived from Journey to the West. On February 15, 2019, the Seoul Western District Court's 11th Civil Affairs Department ruled in favor of the Hong sisters, dismissing the charges.
Projects with Studio Dragon
Following the resolution of their legal dispute, the Hong sisters returned to television with Hotel del Luna. Starring Lee Ji-eun and Yeo Jin-goo as the owner and manager of a hotel catering exclusively to ghosts, the series was produced by GTist, a subsidiary of Studio Dragon, and directed by Oh Chung-hwan. It aired on tvN from July 13 to September 1, 2019. The drama became the most-watched tvN series of 2019, achieving a peak viewership rating of approximately 12%, and remains one of highest-rated Korean dramas in cable television history. It was also recognized as the most popular fantasy series on Viki in 2019.
In 2019, the they began developing the project alongside director Park Jun-hwa. By December 5 of that year, the series was in development for tvN under working title I saram tongyeogi doenayo? (이 사람 통역이 되나요?; 'Can this person interpret?'). The project was later renamed Guwonui tongyeok (구원의 통역; 'Interpretation of salvation'), with overseas filming scheduled in China, however it was cancelled due to the COVID-19.
The Hong sisters and Park subsequently pivoted to collaborate on a different tvN drama, Alchemy of Souls. Starring Lee Jae-wook, Jung So-min, Go Youn-jung, and Hwang Min-hyun, the story follows young mages navigating the realms of heaven and earth. The series aired on tvN and is available for streaming on TVING and Netflix in selected regions. The production was divided into two parts: Part 1 aired from June 18 to August 28, 2022, spanning 20 episodes, while Part 2, titled Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow, aired from December 10, 2022, to January 8, 2023, for 10 episodes.
Style
The Hong sisters's background in variety television has shaped their narrative approach, which prioritizes audience engagement through fast-paced storytelling. Jin-hyuk, the director of Master's Sun, observed: "Because entertainment is a competition based on minutes and seconds, I think the compulsion to change the channel even if it was boring for just one minute naturally led to training."
Their work is characterized by a blend of broad comedy and romantic elements, which often transition into more dramatic or melancholic tones during the latter half of their series. They are noted for a signature style that utilizes rapid narratives, puns and meta meta-fictional references, and quirky characters. Their approach frequently involves placing figures from classical literature or romance novels into contemporary settings and focusing on the personal growth of ordinary individuals rather than archetypal heroes.
The Hong sisters are also credited with broadening the range of their leading actresses by subverting common genre stereotypes in favor of dynamic, passionate female characters. Their dramas have facilitated significant shifts in public perception for several actresses. Han Chae-young transitioned from a "Barbie doll" image to portraying a plucky, diligent student in Sassy Girl Chun-hyang, while Lee Da-hae demonstrated comedic versatility in My Girl. Han Ye-seul successfully countered early criticism regarding her acting through her performance of a sharp-tongued heiress in Couple or Trouble. The writers publicly supported Sung Yu-ri for her performance in Hong Gil-dong, they posted strong praise and defense of her acting on the drama's website. Similarly, My Girlfriend Is a Nine-Tailed Fox provided Shin Min-ah with a career-defining role that helped distinguish her as an actress rather than a model.