‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ Goes Viral in China—Illegally?
The hit K-Drama “When Life Gives You Tangerines” is currently riding a wave of global success. From its captivating storyline to emotional performances, it has quickly gained a strong fanbase—not just in South Korea, but also internationally. However, the drama's unexpected popularity in China is creating a new controversy.
The Rise of the 'Kim Seon-ho Challenge' on Chinese SNS
One key scene from Episode 13 of “When Life Gives You Tangerines” has exploded in popularity across Chinese social media. In this moment, Kim Seon-ho’s character, Park Chung-seop, pretends to faint and smiles after seeing IU’s character in a wedding dress. This light-hearted scene turned into the viral #KimSeonhoSmileChallenge, which has taken over platforms like TikTok, Douyin, and Xiaohongshu.
Even famous Chinese actress Bai Lu joined the trend, making the challenge more popular. Some videos using this scene have reached over 100 million views. On Douban, China’s well-known community site, fans created a drama review page with over 150,000 ratings and 60,000 comments. State media outlet Global Times also praised the drama, giving it a high rating of 9.4 out of 10.
But There's a Bigger Problem: Illegal Streaming in China
Despite the love for the show, there’s one major issue—Netflix is not officially available in China. This means that all these views, memes, and viral videos are based on illegally accessed content. Pirated versions of “When Life Gives You Tangerines” are being shared widely, raising concerns about copyright infringement and ethics.
What's more troubling is that viral clips from the show are now being used for tourism marketing. One example is the city of Zhangjiajie, which referenced a line from the show where a character dreams of seeing the autumn leaves there. Zhangjiajie’s tourism board used this line in an online post and even invited the cast to visit. However, this line is from a pirated version of the show.
Professor Seo Kyung-duk from Sungshin Women’s University openly criticized this. He said that when even local governments use pirated content for promotion, it’s a serious issue. He also noted that this isn’t the first time—Netflix's "Squid Game" was also widely pirated in China when it was released.
He urged the South Korean government to take immediate steps, saying that ignoring this problem could harm Korean entertainment content in the long run. “We need stronger protection of creative work,” he said.
As “When Life Gives You Tangerines” continues to win hearts globally, its popularity in China shows both the power of Korean content and the weakness of copyright protection. Fans might be enjoying the story, but behind the scenes, the creators are facing a major challenge.
It’s time for content producers and the Korean government to take action. Protecting creative content isn’t just about money—it’s about respect for the hard work of artists, actors, and everyone involved in making these beloved dramas.
