Phoenix 2020

Phoenix 2020 is a South Korean television romantic drama series directed by Lee Hyun-jik starring Hong Soo-ah, Lee Jae-woo, Seo Ha-jun and Park Young-rin. The series is a reboot of the 2004 MBC series of the same name and includes 120 episodes. The story follows a rich woman and a poor man who marry, get divorced, and meet again after their fortunes have reversed. It premiered on SBS TV on October 26, 2020, and aired on weekdays at 8:35a.m. KST until April 9, 2021.

Synopsis

Wealthy chaebol, Lee Ji-eun falls in love with the poor Jang Sae-hoon and marries against their families' wishes. Ji-eun was engaged to Sae-hoon's family friend, Seo Jeong-in, but he was in a committed relationship with another woman. The couple was expecting a child despite the lack of approval from Jeong-in's father. Ji-eun and Sae-hoon eventually divorce, and Jeong-in later dies. After ten years, Ji-eun and Sae-hoon meet again but with swapped lifestyles. Once affluent, Ji-eun lost her fortune while Sae-hoon became a rich entrepreneur. Their changes in wealth allow them to view the world differently and understand each other leading to their reunification.
However, they both have other love interests. Ji-eun meets Seo Jeong-min, heir to the Seorin Group and Jeong-in's twin brother, and they start going out while Sae-hoon is dating his girlfriend, Mi-ran. At the same time, Jeong-min's ambitious stepmother, Choi Myung-hwa, wants to hang on to Seorin Group at all costs. She is Mi-ran's mother but living under an assumed name and has not seen Mi-ran in years. Jeong-min dislikes Myung-hwa, and Seo Moon-soo plans to remove her.
The show ends with a series of legal cases against Seorin Group, ironically brought to court by Jeong-min himself after he tires of his father's controlling tendencies. Seo Moon-soo is angry at his only living son after Jeong-in's death. In the legal chaos, Moon-soo jettisons Myung-hwa but she kills him and stays with her daughter. Ji-eun and Jeong-min break up, and Ji-eun and Sae-hoon start to work together again.

Cast

Main

Hong Soo-ah as Lee Ji-eun, a chaebol, who ten years later, became a helper
Lee Jae-woo as Jang Sae-hoon aka William Jang
Seo Ha-joon as Seo Jeong-min
Park Young-rin as Miranda

Supporting

Yang Hye-jin as Cho Hyun-sook
Kim Seung-hyun as Cho Hyun-min Lee Ji-eun's maternal uncle
Lee Chung-mi as Ji-eun's younger sister
Jeong Seo-ha as Lee Young-eun, Lee Ji-eun's sister
Ok Ji-young as Nam Bok-ja, Lee Ji-eun's best friend

;Jang Se-hun's family and people around him

Shin Seong-gyun as Jang Ji-wook, Jang Se-hoon's father
Kim Ho-chang as Kim Ho-jin, Jang Se-hun's best friend

;Seo Jeong-min's family and people around him

Kim Jong-seok as Seo Moon-soo
Seo Ha-joon as Seo Jeong-in
Hyuna Sung as Choi Myung-hwa /Baek Soon Su
Yang Hong-seok as Shin A-jun
Lee Chung-mi as Seo Eun Ju, secretary to Seo Jeong-min
Jin Miryung as Seo Hee Su
Park Gi-pyo as Danny

;Others

Oh Cho-hee as Hannah Na-kyung
Kim Byung-chun as Park Kwang-cheol
Kang Sung-jin as Lecturer

Production

On June 30, 2020, SBS announced their remake of the 2004 drama Phoenix with the original writer, Lee Yoo-jin. The remake ran for 120 episodes, a much longer run compared to the original's 26 episodes. Lee Yoo-jin commented on the story, "It seems to be a different story from the original. The setting of reunion between Lee Ji-eun and Jang Se-hoon is changed, but the reunion and love journey of the two are different from the original. After reuniting the once-loved man and woman, the process of recovering and understanding the wounds that have been inflicted on each other has been depicted, rather than the ending of achieving love again." The filming started in the second half of 2020 and a production presentation was held on October 20, 2020.

Release

The television series first aired on October 26, 2020, on SBS TV and aired on weekday mornings until April 9, 2021.