The ULTIMATE List Of Thriller K-Dramas Of 2025 

For ages, K-dramas were all about romance, historical dramas, and touching family stories. Those are still here. But lately, the genre of darker and super addictive thriller Kdrama is taking over. 

South Korea has seriously upped its game in suspense. They’re doing murder mysteries with social commentary, psychological thrillers that mess with your head, and action-packed revenge stories about corruption. 

Korean thrillers are always pushing boundaries that Western shows usually don’t. They look into the whodunit, but also the why, and what it says about the world we live in. 

Personally, I believe that 2025 was an amazing year for these shows. Think sequels everyone had been waiting for and fresh stories, thriller K-dramas that year were full of tension, had characters that weren’t totally good or evil, and plots that stayed with you. 

If you’re ready for crime, chaos, conspiracies, and some relief, check out this list till the end! 

Best Thriller Kdrama Of 2025 

K-drama thrillers are some of the most exciting shows on streaming right now. They effortlessly blend genres—crime, action, psychological drama, sci-fi, and even dark comedy—while maintaining tight storytelling and emotional depth. 

Whether you prefer brand-new stories or long-running franchises returning with higher stakes, these ten K-dramas represent the very best thrills of 2025. 

10. Squid Game (Season 3) 

Not many shows have changed pop culture like Squid Game, and its third season wrapped up Gi-hun’s wild ride, something that I (like many others) was waiting for. 

Season 3 starts right after Season 2’s crazy ending. Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) is leading a fight against whoever is behind the game. Netflix splitting up the last season kinda slowed things down, but these last six episodes more than make up for that. 

Things get super emotional when Jun-hee (Jo Yu-ri) has a baby in the middle of the game. This makes the players, and us, think hard about one thing: if staying alive is worth losing your soul. 

Season 3 is good because it wraps things up. Gi-hun’s story ends in a way that feels right, sad, and kinda hopeful. Even if people aren’t as hyped as before, Squid Game is still one of the most exciting shows of 2025. 

9. Dear X

Dear X is a thriller Kdrama that’s super dark and twisty. Kim You-jung kills it as the main character, an actress with a secret sociopathic side. The show digs into how her awful childhood messed her up and shows that people aren’t always what they look like. 

It also tackles how fans can get way too obsessed with celebs and fame, mixing that with thriller vibes. 

The story’s about Baek Ah-jin (played by Kim), who had a rough childhood that taught her to play people. She’s been faking it as a sociopath since high school, and once she hit it big as an actress, she wanted even more money and fame. 

The show sees how her actions mess with everyone around her, and they start wondering if they enabled her or just made things worse. It’s a neat look at a tricky character, with tons of exciting drama and surprises. 

8. Queen Mantis 

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Queen Mantis, a South Korean take on the French show La Mante, shows that remakes can still feel new if they’re done well. 

It came out in mid-2025, and it’s honestly one of the best thrillers from that year. The story is full of twists, the characters have messy relationships, and they’re just plain interesting. Go Hyun-jung and Jang Dong-yoon play the mom and son, and their relationship is seriously captivating. 

The show is about this detective, Cha Soo-yeol (played by Jang), who’s trying to solve a series of murders that seem to be the work of a copycat killer – same methods, all that. 

Here’s the thing: these murders are similar to the ones his mom, Jung Yi-shin (Go), did back in the day before she was arrested. So, he needs to talk to her to figure out why and how, but since he’s hated her for years, dealing with her is a pain. 

If you like movies like The Silence of the Lambs or shows like Criminal Minds, you’ll likely enjoy Queen Mantis. It’s a solid crime thriller to watch. 

7. Trigger 

Trigger is one of those shows you start “just to check out” and end up binge-watching in a weekend. Set in an alternate version of South Korea where firearms suddenly flood the black market, this series dropped on Netflix in July 2025. 

It’s got Kim Nam-gil and Kim Young-kwang in it. If you’re into Netflix thrillers, you might know Kim Young-kwang from Somebody back in 2022. 

And Kim Nam-gil? He’s a pro, famous for Queen Seondeok, and he was also in Karma, another thriller that hit Netflix this year. The idea is kinda sci-fi, but Trigger is a cool, suspenseful thriller that mixes stuff up and keeps you guessing. 

Trigger takes place in a South Korea where, out of nowhere, guns are all over the place. Since guns were a no-go before, a good cop named Lee Do (Kim Nam-gil) has to figure out where they came from. 

Then, this shady arms dealer named Moon Baek (Kim Young-kwang) shows up, and they have to team up to deal with all the gun crime. It sort of preaches a bit about the use of guns and their freedom. Trigger, real or not, is a K-series that’s fun to binge on a weekend. 

6. Hyper Knife 

If you dig Park Eun-bin, check out this thriller K-drama! Hyper Knife mixes medicine with thrills, focusing on Dr. Jung Se-ok, once a star surgeon who screwed up badly. 

Park Eun-bin, who nailed it as the lawyer in Extraordinary Attorney Woo, plays Jung. She’s totally different here: a genius, slightly nuts doctor, and she totally rocks the role. 

After a tragedy, Dr. Jung Se-ok (Eun-bin) can’t practice legally anymore, so she starts doing illegal surgeries. This kicks off a deadly game with her old mentor, Dr. Choi Deok-hee (Sul Kyung-gu). 

She’s out for revenge, but he’s trying to stop her from breaking the law. It’s a crazy, twist-filled game. Just so you know, it gets a bit bloody, but it’s worth watching. 

5. Mercy for None

So Ji-sub? He’s got this amazing thing about him on screen. He just grabs your attention, whether he’s quiet or going on and on. You just want to keep watching him. 

In Mercy for None, which is one of the most exciting shows this year, So also gets to do some serious action stuff. With his natural charm, he makes this violent show totally worth it, even though the whole cast is great. 

Mercy for None is about Nam Gi-jun (So), a former gang enforcer. His younger brother, Gi-seok (Lee Joon-hyuk), now does that job. When Gi-seok dies, it seems like an accident. That’s when Gi-jun comes out of retirement. 

He wants to find out what really happened and get back at everyone who had anything to do with his brother’s death. Gi-jun is angry and he’s been holding stuff in, so he goes wild on the gang that employed Gi-seok, plus their enemies.  

He won’t stop until everyone is gone. If you’re into John Wick, Mercy for None is basically a South Korean TV show with the same vibe. It’s got these really cool action scenes that will make you want to relax 

4. Weak Hero Class 2 

Weak Hero is another show that got a second season in 2025. Season 2 came out in June, and everyone was really excited for it because Season 1 had a ton of fans. 

The show about kids dealing with school bullying hits home for viewers of all ages. Weak Hero has stayed popular for the past few years, not just this year. 

Park Ji-hoon is back as Si-eun, who is super smart and always looking out for people. He’s still great. But the other actors also shine, especially Ryeoun as Baku, who brings some funny moments to Season 2 and is a big part of the show. 

Weak Hero Class 2 picks up with Si-eun after something goes down at his old school. He stood up to the wrong people, so he’s not allowed at most schools in South Korea, except for one. 

He goes to that school and makes some new friends, including Baku and Gotak (Lee Min-jae), who are pretty tough. This season, Si-eun fights a larger group that promotes bullying and illegal activities, making things more dangerous and leading to much more fighting. 

Personally, I feel like Weak Hero Class 2 is better, stronger, and even more addictive than Season 1. Everyone is hoping for Season 3, and there’s plenty of material for it because Season 2 ends without a real resolution. 

3. Karma 

Kim Nam-gil killed it this year with two amazing thrillers! On top of Trigger, he was also a main guy in Karma, alongside Park Hae-soo from Squid Game. 

Karma is like a mystery box, bringing different characters together to show how our choices can mess with other people, even when we have good intentions. It’s got a packed story and everything you want in a great Korean thriller, making it one of the best this year. 

Karma tells the story of a doctor, a guy drowning in debt, and someone who gets caught up in their mess. They’re all connected in a bad situation. 

As they try to fix things for themselves, their actions blow back on each other, creating a super intense dynamic. 

Fair warning, Karma can get pretty heavy, so don’t expect a light and fun thriller. But if you dig a gloomy kind of vibe, you’ll be all over this. 

2. Nine Puzzles 

If you’re into solving murders, you’ll probably get hooked on Nine Puzzles on Disney. The show is serious about its mystery, and they make everyone look guilty. 

It’s like Sherlock meets True Detective, with lots of excitement, chases, and OMG moments that will have you glued to the screen. If you have the time, you can totally binge-watch this thriller Kdrama in a day, and trust me, you’ll want to. 

With Son Suk-ku in one of his best performances (fingers crossed for more!), Nine Puzzles is a crazy ride from beginning to end. 

Nine Puzzles starts with Yoon E-na (Kim Da-mi), a high school student, finding her uncle dead at home. Near his body, she sees a puzzle piece that looks like it’s part of something bigger. 

Fast forward a few years, E-na is now a smart profiler. When another puzzle piece shows up after a new murder, she teams up with the skeptical detective Kim Han-saem (Son) to solve the case. 

This show is super fun and will shock you with twists at every turn. Nine Puzzles is definitely one of the best this year. 

1. As You Stood By 

As You Stood By isn’t just the best thriller of 2025—it’s one of the most emotionally devastating K-dramas in recent memory. 

It’s a psychological drama that mixes real-life issues with crime in a great way. The show is raw about domestic violence, showing how it hits victims and those around them. There’s one unrealistic part, but it fits the story, so it’s cool. Emmy winner Lee Yoo-mi and Jeon So-nee are great as best friends who are dealing with their own stuff. 

The show is about two best friends: Hui-soo (played by Lee), who’s married to a rich broker that abuses her, and Eun-soo (played by Jeon), Hui-soo’s best friend who works at a fancy mall. Eun-soo saw abuse growing up. 

When she sees Hui-soo’s bruises, she decides to help her friend escape her marriage. The scenes where they just hang out and share a meal can be super emotional because Lee and Jeon are so good. 

They nail their roles. The suspense keeps things interesting. As You Stood By is like a mirror to what goes on in society, and on top of that, it’s a solid crime thriller. 

Other Notable Thriller KDramas 

Did you think that the list was over? Well, TBH, there are a few other thriller kdrama that I have really enjoyed. And even though I had my own list from 2025 to watch, I could not really stop myself from going back to binge-watching these. 

Here’s the list that is my personal favorite when it comes to thriller K-dramas: 

1. The Good Detective 

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Lee Dae-chul (Jo Jae-yoon) claims he’s innocent, but he’s convicted of a double murder and sentenced to death. Five years later, his daughter disappears and might be dead. 

Detective Kang Do-chang (Son Hyun-joo) reopens Dae-chul’s case. Together with his sharp partner Oh Ji-hyeok (Jang Seung-jo) and a reporter, Jin Seo-kyung (Lee Elijah), who doesn’t give up, they search for the truth. 

They’re racing against the clock to save Dae-chul from execution and finding corruption everywhere, even at the highest levels. 

The Good Detective was super popular on TV, so they’re making a second season. Viewers loved that the characters seemed like real people and the story had a good flow with lots of turns. 

It’s not like some crazy Korean dramas; this one hits the spot. It has the perfect mix of serious stuff and funny moments, making it a blast to watch. 

2. Beyond Evil 

This creepy thriller is about two cops, Shin Ha-kyun (a veteran actor) and Yeo Jin-goo (used to be a child star), who reluctantly team up to find a killer who’s been scaring everyone in a quiet Korean town. They start wondering if anyone is innocent — even each other — and they learn that a lot of people in town have dark secrets. 

You got to watch closely because this show is full of surprises and side stories. It might seem strange and confusing at first, but things start to make sense pretty fast. Just when you think you’ve figured everything out, something else happens that keeps you guessing until the end. 

When Beyond Evil first came out, people started comparing it to great Korean movies like Memories of Murder. It got seven nominations and won three awards at the 2021 Baeksang Arts Awards (best screenplay, best actor, and best drama). 

And trust me, that’s a big deal in South Korea! 

3. My Name 

Yoon Ji-woo (Han So-hee) wants revenge after seeing her father killed. She starts training with Choi Mu-jin (Park Hee-soon), a big-shot crime boss and her dad’s good buddy, in order to learn how to fight. 

Eventually, she goes undercover as a cop. As a newbie in the narcotics unit, Ji-woo is trying to find her father’s killer as well as helping Mu-jin stay out of the cops’ way. 

My Name quickly became one of Netflix’s Top 10 series around the world soon after it premiered. 

People liked it for the intense action scenes (get ready for some bloody knife fights) and the actors’ great work, especially Han So-hee’s. This dark crime thriller only has eight episodes, which I think makes it a good show to binge-watch over the weekend. 

4. Money Heist: Korea – Joint Economic Area 

As you can already understand, this action-packed show is an adaptation of the Spanish hit La Casa de Papel. It’s set in a Korea that’s about to reunite peacefully. They’re even planning to make a new, combined currency. 

But, like the title says, where there’s money, someone’s gonna try to steal it. A team made up of North and South Korean thieves, led by a mastermind called the Professor, plans to swipe the cash straight from the new mint. 

Dressed in matching red outfits and masks, they break into the place, grab hostages, and keep you hooked for all 12 episodes. 

5. Vagabond 

Vagabond is a spy story that’s all about non-stop action. When a plane headed to Morocco from Incheon crashes, killing over 200 people, including the nephew of stuntman Cha Dal-geon (Lee Seung-gi), he heads to Morocco for a memorial. 

He thinks the crash was a plan. He gets help from Go Hae-ri (Bae Suzy), an agent working undercover at the South Korean embassy in Morocco. As they look for the truth, they find a huge scheme with some of Korea’s most important people involved. 

Vagabond, which has a great cast and some scenes in Morocco, got good reviews for its awesome action scenes, cool camera work, and quick story. Expect lots of fights, car chases, and crazy surprises all the way to the end. 

The only thing is, the show ends without wrapping everything up, and there’s no word on a second season yet. But even though things don’t get tied up perfectly, it’s still worth watching for the non-stop excitement. 

6. Inspector Koo 

If you want something less gory and heavy, check out Inspector Koo, which is like South Korea’s take on Killing Eve. 

Lee Young-ae (from Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, Jewel in the Palace, and Saimdang) stars as Koo Kyung-yi. She was a cop, but after her husband passed away, she became a loner who likes to drink and play games. 

She starts working as an insurance investigator, using her cleverness to look into fake insurance claims. But then some strange deaths occur, and she thinks a serial killer might be making murders look like accidents. 

Inspector Koo is a strange thriller Kdrama that’s hard to put in one box. It has weird characters and visuals that seem like they came from a webtoon. If you’ve watched K-dramas for a while, it’s cool to see Lee act differently. 

She didn’t care about looking perfect for this part because she thought the show was odd and peculiar. It might be strange to see this fancy star as a messy person playing computer games in a bug-filled apartment, but this show has a lot more surprises. 

7. Voice 

This crime story is about Kang Kwon-joo (Lee Ha-na), a smart cop who can profile voices at an emergency call center. She has really good hearing, and she and her team try to save people from dangerous crimes fast. Each season, Kwon-joo teams up with a detective to catch either a serial killer or some international criminals. 

Voice was a smash hit in South Korea. They made four seasons of it, which is rare for K-dramas. You can watch the first two on Netflix. It even got remade in Japan and Thailand. Just a heads up, this show can be pretty intense and scary, so maybe keep the lights on. 

8. Stranger 

Last one on the list of the best thriller kdrama to watch is Stranger. Bae Doona and Cho Seung-woo came together in this one-of-a-kind Korean thriller drama mystery. And a lot of people, just like me, often claim this one to be one of the best Korean crime shows ever. 

Cho plays Hwang Si-mok, a super smart prosecutor who doesn’t show much emotion. He’s looking into the death of a CEO who wasn’t exactly on the level. Bae kills it as Han Yeo-jin, a police officer who’s outgoing and chatty. 

She’s the perfect partner for Si-mok, who is more reserved. Together, they try to get to the bottom of a murder that seems to involve police and government corruption. 

Stranger won three Baeksang Arts Awards, including one for best screenplay, best actor, and a top prize for TV. It was also on The New York Times’ list of Best TV Shows of 2017. 

People, not only in Korea but also worldwide, really liked it, and it even inspired Beyond Evil. TBH, it’s hard to find anything wrong with this show, at least the first season. Everything is perfect, from the writing to the acting.