NEW YORK/PALO ALTO — In more than a decade as an auditor, Jae Kim had never been asked a crunch question like the one directed his way by a Georgia state representative during a meeting on South Korean corporate investments: “Have you watched ‘Itaewon Class?'”
“At that moment, I was like, wow, K-drama is pretty influential!” Kim said, referring to the 2020 Netflix hit set in the famous Seoul nightlife district. “I know where Itaewon is, it is a very hip place, so we talked about Itaewon for some time.”