Scripted series · SBS
The Legend of the Blue Sea
How can a mermaid from the Joseon era survive in modern-day Seoul?
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
Gianna Jun
Shim Cheong / Se-hwa
20 eps
Lee Min-ho
Heo Joon-jae / Kim Dam-ryung
20 eps
Lee Hee-jun
Jo Nam-doo / Park Moo
20 eps
Shin Won-ho
Tae-oh
20 eps
Shin Rin-a
Seo Yoo-na
20 eps
Shin Hae-sun
Cha Shi-ah
20 eps
Moon So-ri
Ahn Jin-joo
20 eps
Na Young-hee
Mo Yoo-ran
20 eps
Hwang Shin-hye
Kang Seo-hee/Kang Ji-yeon
20 eps
Oh Yeon-ah
Young Kang Seo-hee/Kang Ji-yeon/Hong Nan
20 eps
Lee Ji-hoon
Heo Chi-hyun
20 eps
Park Hae-soo
Hong Dong-pyo
20 eps
Sung Dong-il
Ma Dae-young / Yang Seung-gil
20 eps
Choi Jung-woo
Heo Il-joong
20 eps
Jinyoung
Young Heo Joon-jae/Kim Dam-ryeong
20 eps
Hong Jin-kyung
Shim Cheong's Homeless Friend
20 eps
Park Ji-il
Manager Nam
20 eps
Lee Jae-won
Cha Dong-shik
20 eps
Shim Yi-young
Young Moo Yoo-ran
20 eps
Shin Eun-soo
Young Se-hwa
20 eps
Kim Sung-ryung
Jang Jin-ok
20 eps
Cho Jung-seok
Yoo Jong-hoon
20 eps
Choi Kwon
Young Manager Nam
20 eps
Kal So-won
Child Se-hwa
20 eps
Jeon Jin-seo
Child Heo Joon-jae/Kim Dam-ryeong
20 eps
Lee Ho-jae
Professor Jin Kyung-won/Fortune Teller
20 eps
Seo Dong-won
Aquarium Manager
20 eps
Krystal Jung
Flight Attendant
20 eps
Kim Hye-yoon
Jang Jin-ok's Daughter
20 eps
Sung Chang-hoon
Mr. Yang's Subordinate
20 eps
Ko Kyu-pil
Bodyguard
20 eps
Ahn Jae-hong
Missionary Thomas
20 eps
Park Jin-joo
Nurse
20 eps
Jeong Yu-mi
Kim Hee-jin
20 eps
Kim Seul-gi
Mermaid
20 eps
Carson Allen
Mermaid
20 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How The Legend of the Blue Sea actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
The Legend of the Blue Sea reads strongest on Character Depth, World Building and Bingeability.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
The story
What it's about
A mermaid from the Joseon period ends up in present-day Seoul, where she crosses paths with a swindler who may have ties to someone from her past.
The run
Seasons
1 season · 20 episodes.
Season 0 · Complete
Specials
20161 episode
Season 1 · Complete
Season 1
201620 episodes
9.3IMDbHow can a mermaid from the Joseon era survive in modern society? Sim Chung is a mermaid who follows her one true love, a nobleman’s son named Kim Dam-Ryung from the Joseon Dynasty, to modern-day Seoul. Dam-Ryung’s modern doppelgänger is Heo Joon-Jae, a highly skilled scam artist who first becomes interested in Sim Chung because of a jade bracelet worth $6 million that Sim Chung wears. With nowhere to go, Sim Chung is taken in by Joon-Jae, who also finds his con partners, Jo Nam-Doo and Tae-O, hiding out in his home from a vengeful past victim of their scams. Sim Chung discovers a rival for Joon-Jae’s heart in Cha Si-A, a researcher at KAIST who deals with ancient artifacts. When a dangerous killer named Ma Dae-Young, sent by Joon-Jae’s stepmother who wants to make her own son the heir to Joon-Jae’s fortunes, can Sim Chung survive her strange new environment while also helping Joon-Jae avoid the dangers that await him?
Best episode · S01E03 Episode 3
Where the series peaks
Best Episodes
The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.
S01E03
Episode 3
With no memory, Joon-Jae finds himself alone on a beach next to a jade bracelet and a single pearl. Meanwhile, the mermaid crosses the ocean to Seoul.
S01E01
Episode 1
In 1958, the nobleman Dam-Ryung releases a mermaid back into the ocean. In present-day Seoul, the figure of conman Joon-Jae stands on the same spot.
- Written by Park Ji-eun
S01E15
Episode 15
Sim Chung's heart will stop without Joon-Jae's love. Upon learning this, Joon-Jae talks about his dreams and finding out that Sim Chung is a mermaid.
S01E02
Episode 2
Joon-Jae brings a beautiful woman back to his hotel, unaware that she's a mermaid. Jin-Ok realizes she's been scammed and sends men after Joon-Jae.
Recently aired
Latest Episodes
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- Agnès CarnicéProducer
- Jinnie ChoiExecutive Producer
- Jong Byeong BaeExecutive Producer
Writing
- Park Ji-eunWriter
- Park Ji-eunWriter
Direction
- Jin HyukDirector
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- Rakuten VikiStreaming
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