The Judge Returns
The Judge Returns is an ongoing South Korean television series starring Ji Sung, Park Hee-soon, and Won Jin-ah. It premiered on MBC TV on January 2, 2026, and airs every Friday and Saturday at 21:50. It is also available for streaming on TVING and Wavve in Korea, on HBO Max in Asia, and on Disney+ in Japan.
Synopsis
A legal drama about just judge Lee Han-young, who cries out, "Let's not judge others' lives as we please," regains consciousness after an unjust death and returns to the past to punish the wrongdoers and change his fate.Cast
Main
- Ji Sung as Lee Han-young: Judge of the South Chungcheong District Court.
- Park Hee-soon as Kang Shin-jin: A senior criminal judge at the Seoul Central District Court.
- Won Jin-ah as Kim Jin-ah: A public prosecutor in the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office.
- Tae Won-seok as Seok Jeong-ho: Han Young's best supporter and friend.
- Baek Jin-hee as Song Na-yeon: A reporter with a strong sense of justice, working in the legal affairs department of the Daejin Ilbo newspaper.
- Oh Se-young as Yoo Se-hee: Han-young's ex-wife, the youngest daughter of President Yoo Seon-cheol.
- Hwang Hee as Park Chul-woo: A public prosecutor in the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office.
Court people
- Kim Tae-woo as Baek Yi-seok: Chief Judge of South Chungcheong District Court.
- as Lim Jeong-sik: Criminal judge of Chungcheong District Court.
People around Kang Shin-jin
- Jung Hee-tae as Kim Ji-han: Chief Judge of the Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court.
- as Kim Yun-hyeok: Judge in Chungcheong District Court.
Haenal Law Firm
- Ahn Nae-sang as Yoo Seon-cheol: President of Haenal Law.
- as Yoo Jin-kwang: The eldest son of Haenal Law.
- Baek Seung-hee as Yu Ha-na: The eldest daughter of President Yoo Seon-cheol.
S Group
- as Jang Tae-sik
- Kim Byeong-ki as Jang Yong-hyun
Lee Han-young's family and neighbors
- as Lee Bong-sook
- Hwang Young-hee as Shin Nam-sook
- Seong Byeong-sook as Park Mal-rye
- Im Yul-ri as Han na-young
Special appearances
- Kim Dong-jun as Prosecutor Kang
- as Choi Jong-hak
- Bae In-hyuk as Kim Sang-jin: serial killer who was sentenced to death by Lee Han-young
- as a judge
- as Park Hyeok-jun
- Jang Hee-ryung as Kim Ga-yeong
- Park Kyung-lim as herself
- as Um Jun-ho
- as Heo Dong-ki
- as Woo Kyo-hun
- as Lee Chang-hyo
Production
The series is based on the Naver Webtoon of the same name, created by Lee Hae-nal. It is directed by Lee Jae-jin, whose credits include The Third Marriage and Motel California, and written by Kim Kwang-min. It is produced by OH Story, Slingshot Studio.On June 17, 2025, the main cast was confirmed as Ji Sung, Won Jin-ah, and Park Hee-soon. Filming was announced to begin on that day. Baek Jin-hee joined the main cast on August 27, 2025.