Korean Dramas and the Brazilian Audience: Cultural Misalignment, Conservative Demand, and the Decline of Traditional Telenovelas

This paper investigates the rapid rise of Korean dramas (K-dramas, or doramas in Brazilian vernacular) among Brazilian audiences and examines the socio-cultural and ideological factors driving this phenomenon. Drawing on audience data from the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE), Rakuten Viki subscription growth figures, Fabric market analytics, and academic literature on Brazilian television, we argue that the popularity of K-dramas in Brazil is not merely a product of the global Korean Wave but is substantially driven by a domestic demand gap: a large conservative, religious, and culturally mainstream audience underserved by the progressive editorial direction of Brazilian broadcast television, particularly TV Globo. We further analyze the structural differences between K-dramas and Brazilian telenovelas—episode count, narrative pace, and content tone—and discuss the implications of the streaming revolution for media plurality and cultural production in Brazil. The paper concludes with reflections on the contradictions observed when Brazilian producers attempt to replicate the K-drama format while inadvertently reintroducing the very content characteristics that alienated their core audiences in the first place.