Taxi Driver (South Korean TV series)


Taxi Driver is a 2021 South Korean television series starring Lee Je-hoon, Pyo Ye-jin, Kim Eui-sung, Jang Hyuk-jin, Bae Yoo-ram, Esom and Shin Jae-ha. Based on the webtoon The Deluxe Taxi by Carlos and Lee Jae-jin, the story is inspired by actual real life heinous crimes committed in Korea. The first season aired on SBS TV from April 9 to May 29, 2021, every Friday and Saturday at 22:00. The second season aired from February 17 to April 15, 2023. The third and final season aired from November 21, 2025 to January 10, 2026. It is also available for streaming on Wavve in South Korea, on Kocowa in the Americas, and on Netflix, Viki and Viu in selected regions.
Taxi Driver received praise from the viewers for its performances and storylines. The first-season finale episode achieved the fourth highest rating of any Friday-Saturday drama in SBS history. The second-season finale episode earned a higher rating than the previous season. It also set a new record for the highest ratings achieved by any miniseries thus far in 2023.

Synopsis

Season 1

Kim Do-gi, a former special forces soldier who works as a driver for Rainbow Taxi Company, a secret and anonymous vigilante group that offers victims seeking revenge call for justice to people that have not been punished by the law. The squad features CEO Jang Sung-chul, with hacker Ahn Go-eun and mechanics Choi Kyung-ku and Park Jin-eon. They work together to break the law and punish criminals who avoid prosecution. Prosecutor Kang Ha-na grows more suspicious of Rainbow Taxi and get pulled into their work, while an embattled Do-gi faces his past and the limit of vigilante justice.

Season 2

After the events of the previous missions, members of the Rainbow Taxi have gone back to their normal lives, until Kim Do-gi receives an urgent request from a father whose son had been trafficked to Vietnam. The crisis pulls the group together, and they start their activities once more with more determination than ever. A new driver, On Ha-jun, comes into the company, though his presence harbors hidden consequences. As the team investigates trafficking and corruption that reach across borders, more complicated threats arise, and they start to reveal a greater conspiracy that involves themselves.

Season 3

The Rainbow Taxi team is back for more cases that involve highly dangerous criminals, both from international syndicates and organized domestic offenders. The missions get more and more complex, with added layers of moral complication that make the team question the aftermath of their vigilante methods. Meanwhile, the relationships between members deepen, especially as Kim Do-gi faces personal loss and tests of loyalty.

Cast and characters

Main

Season 1

;Changsung Jeotgal Factory
  • Jo In as Kang Maria
  • Tae Hang-ho as Park Ju-chan
  • Song Duk-ho as Cho Jong-geun
  • Kim Do-yeon as Choi Jong-suk
  • Jo Dae-hee as Kim Hyung-wook
;Sejung High School
;U Data
  • Jeon Sung-il as Seo Young-min
  • Baek Hyun-jin as Park Yang-jin
  • Cho Ha-seok as Director Jung
  • Kim Jae-young as Mr. Lee
  • Lee Da-il as Mr. Ahn
  • Kwak Min-gyu as Jeon Jin-won
  • Ryu Yi-jae as Ahn Jung-eun
  • Seo Han-gyeol as Choi Min
;Voice Phishing Organization
;Nakwon C&C / Embassy of Bahamas
  • Lee Ho-cheol as Goo Young-tae
  • Jung Kang-hee as Shim Woo-seob
  • Han Kyu-won as Go Dong-hee
  • Han Hyun-ah as Lee Hye-yeon
  • Lee Yoon-hee as Pastor Go
  • Lee Ha-eun as Dong-hee's younger sister
;Oh Chul-young
  • Yang Dong-tak as Oh Chul-young
  • Jeon Seok-chan as Kim Chul-jin
  • Ryu Sung-rok as Han Dong-chan / Oh Hyun-soo

    Season 2

;Vietnam Kidnap Group
  • Choi One as Lee Joon-beom
  • Zo Zee-an as Lee Dong-jae
  • Yoon Seok-hyun as Sang-man
  • Kim Jeong-hoon as a tour guide
  • Lee Kyu-ho as Kwon Du-sik
  • Park Seong-geun as Kim Hyung-sub
;Yongsori Village
  • Byun Joong-hee as Lee Im-soon
  • Ko Sang-ho as Yoo Sang-gi
  • Kang Young-taek as Lee Dong-geun
  • Yoo Dong-hoon as Goo Jae-seung
  • Lee Kwang-hoon as Yong-chil
  • Shin Kang-gyun as Lee Deok-goo
;Feel Consulting
  • Ahn Chae-heum as Hwang Seo-yeon
  • Kim Do-yoon as Kang Pil-seung
  • Kwon Na-hyun as Park So-mang
  • Jeong Young-gi as Park Joon-bin
;Soonbaek Cult
  • Kim Eun-bi as Lee Jin-hee
  • Ahn Sung-woo as Ok Joo-man
  • Jung Ji-woo as Lee Jin-seon
  • Seo Ji-soo as Joo-man's lover
;Jeil Chakhan Hospital
  • Jung Ki-seob as Han Jae-deok
  • Lee Hang-na as Ahn Young-sook
  • Kang Seol as Han Soo-ryeon
  • Kim Jae-min as Gong Soo-ho
  • Kim Young-jin as Manager Kim
;Black Sun
  • Baek Soo-jang as Kim Yong-min
  • Jang In-sub as Choi Seong-eun
  • Kim Chae-eun as Windy
  • Jeon Woon-jong as Cho Gyeong-jang
  • Go Geon-han as Victor
  • Lee Dal as Min Jong-seon
  • Moon Jae-won as Yoo Moon-hyeon
  • Jeon Jun-ho as No. 12
  • Yoo Ji-yeon as Yang Mi-kyung
;Geumsa Organization
  • Park Ho-san as Park Min-geon
  • Kim Chang-hwan as Lee Si-wan
  • Yoon Sang-ho as Bae Ki-seok

    Season 3

;Neko Money
;Noblesse Motors
  • Kim Eun-seok as Oh Man-soo
  • Yoon Shi-yoon as Cha Byeong-jin
  • Son In-yong as Manager Yang
  • Jeong Si-hun as Go Deok-su
  • Ahn Si-eun as Assistant Manager Yoo
  • Lee Woo-sung as Son Min-soo
  • Lee Kyung-chae as Oh Ji-eun
  • Byun Yoon-jeong as Park Mi-jin
;Jingwang University Volleyball Team
  • Kim Gi-cheon as Park Dong-su
  • Lee Do-han as Park Min-ho
  • Eum Moon-suk as Cheon Gwang-jin
  • Shin Ju-hwan as Jo Seong-uk
  • Moon Soo-young as Im Dong-hyeon
  • Choi Jae-sup as Attorney Ha
  • Lee Myeong-ro as Jung Yeon-tae
  • Yang Hak-jin as Hwang Ji-hoon
;Yellowstar Entertainment
  • Oh Ga-bin as Lee Ro-mi
  • Jang Na-ra as Kang Ju-ri
  • * Kang Na-eon as young Kang Ju-ri
  • Yoo Tae-joo as Jung Kyung-soo
  • Choi Seung-joon as Manager Song
  • Yoon Ha-young as Song Ji-an
  • Cho Hye-won as Yeon-min
  • Lee Soo-jin as A-ra
  • Go Hae-won as Su-jeong
  • Lee Sung-woo as Lee An-joon
;Second-hand Market Fraud Operation / Samheungdo Gang
  • Han Jung-hyun as Yoo Min-jung
  • Cha Joon-hee as Park Da-som
  • Park Shi-yoon as Kim Woo-jong
  • Lee Hyo-je as Kim Jung-soo
  • Kim Hyun-kyu as Hong Shin-so
  • Kim Sung-kyu as Go Sung-hyuk
  • Lee Geung-young as Joo Seok-bong
  • Yoo Ji-wang as Choi Cheol-woong
  • Lee Chae-won as Yeo Ye-rim
  • Ji Dae-han as Kim Cheol-min
  • Jang Sung-won as Bong Wook
  • Choi Min as Shin Kyung-soo
  • Park Sung-il as Lee Gi-hyun
  • Oh Gi-gwang as Gi-hyun's cellmate
;2802th Special Missions Force
  • Kim Seo-ha as Park Jae-won
  • Jeon So-nee as Yoo Seon-ah
  • Kim Jong-soo as Oh Won-sang
  • Kim Jin-wook as Kim Tae-hyun
  • Park Do-wook as Lee Hyung-in
  • Jeon Jin-ki as Jo Sang-hoon

    Special appearances

;Season 1
;Season 2
;Season 3
  • Lee Young-ae
  • Jo In as Kang Maria
  • Yoo Seung-mok as Cho Jin-woo
  • Hu In-jeong as Jingwang University volleyball team coach in 2010
  • Kim Gwang-guk and Si Eun-mi as current Jingwang University volleyball team coaches
  • Im Won-hee as Kwak Moo-seok
  • Jung Hyuk and Shin Yu-eun as hosts of Music Stage
  • Shim So-young as Lim Bok-soon
  • Jung Ji-an as Ma Sang-hee
  • Ryu Yi-jae as Ahn Jung-eun

    Series overview

Production

Season 1

;Development
On December 4, 2019, SBS was considering adapting the webtoon The Deluxe Taxi by Carlos and Lee Jae-jin into a television series. Korean streaming platform Wavve was also invested to the series, and has been previously invested in several other series such as Zombie Detective, Bossam: Steal the Fate, and Alice.
;Casting
On November 20, 2020, Lee Je-hoon, Esom, Kim Eui-sung and Lee Na-eun were confirmed to star in the series.
On March 8, 2021, Lee Na-eun was removed from the cast following bullying accusations against her. Two days later, she was replaced by Pyo Ye-jin.
;Filming
About sixty percent of the filming for the first season was complete as of March 8, 2021. Lee Na-eun's scenes were removed and had to re-shot.

Season 2

;Development
On July 6, 2021, SBS announced the production of the second season of the series.
;Casting
Esom had to withdraw from the cast due to scheduling inconsistencies. Lee Je-hoon and Pyo Ye-jin were confirmed to reprise their respective roles. Script reading took place on June 12, 2022. A day later, Kim Eui-sung, Jang Hyuk-jin and Bae Yoo-ram were confirmed to reprise their roles.
;Filming
On July 15, 2022, SBS reported that some of their staff tested positive for COVID-19, causing the filming in Vietnam to be temporarily halted. The Vietnam Kidnap case episodes features scenes shot in Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Huế, and Ha Long Bay.

Season 3

;Development
On April 16, 2023, SBS confirmed that a third season of the series was in the works.
;Casting
Lee Je-hoon, Pyo Ye-jin and Kim Eui-sung will reprise again their roles. Bae Yoo-ram is also confirmed to appear in the third season. Additionally, Edan Lui of Hong Kong boy group Mirror are also starring on the series as part of co-production with Viu.
;Filming
The first few episodes are filmed in Saga and Fukuoka prefectures of Japan.

Release

The first teaser video and teaser poster were released on December 31, 2020.
To promote the second season of the series, Viu invited Lee Je-hoon to his first fan-meeting in the Philippines on March 3, 2023, in Indonesia on March 19, 2023, and in Singapore on March 25, 2023. Lee also participated at the FilMart in Hong Kong, where Viu reported that the second season of the series was the most-watched program following the premiere.

Original soundtrack

Season 1

;Part 1
;Part 2
;Part 3
;Part 4
;Part 5
;Part 6
;Part 7

Season 2

;Part 1
;Part 2
;Part 3
;Part 4
;Part 5
;Part 6

Viewership

Awards and nominations