| The Royal Gambler | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Also known as | Daebak |
| Genre | Historical |
| Written by | Kwon Soon-gyu |
| Directed by | Nam Geon |
| Starring | Jang Keun-suk Yeo Jin-goo Jun Kwang-ryul Choi Min-soo Yoon Jin-seo Lim Ji-yeon Hyun Woo |
| Country of origin | South Korea |
| Original language | Korean |
| No. of episodes | 24 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Lee Hee-soo |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production companies | TheKEntertainment ONDA Entertainment |
| Original release | |
| Network | SBS |
| Release | March 28 (2016-03-28) – June 14, 2016 (2016-06-14) |
The Royal Gambler (Korean: 대박; Hanja: 大撲; RR: Daebak; lit. Jackpot) is a South Korean historical drama starring Jang Keun-suk, Yeo Jin-goo, Jun Kwang-ryul, Choi Min-soo, Yoon Jin-seo, and Lim Ji-yeon. It replaced Six Flying Dragons and aired on SBS on Mondays and Tuesdays at 22:00 (KST) from March 28, 2016, to June 14, 2016, for 24 episodes.
Plot
This drama is about a prince who is forced to live as a commoner and uses his gambling skills to take revenge on the King. Dae-Gil (Jang Geun-suk) and King Yeongjo (Yeo Jin-goo) enter a match. Dae-Gil bets his life and King Yeongjo bets the entire Kingdom of Joseon on the outcome. Dae-Gil is the best gambler in the Joseon era. He holds deep resentment inside, but is also cool on the exterior. King Yeongjo is a man who never lowers his head without a convincing reason. Meanwhile, Dam-Seo (Lim Ji-yeon) exists solely to take revenge upon king.
It is a fictionalised account of events leading to the accession of the throne by King Yeongjo, and also a fictionalised account of the 1728 Musin Rebellion.
Cast
Main cast
- Jang Geun-suk as Baek Dae-gil
- Yeo Jin-goo as Prince Yeoning (King Yeongjo)
- Jun Kwang-ryul as Lee In-jwa
- Choi Min-soo as King Sukjong
- Yoon Jin-seo as Consort Suk
- Lim Ji-yeon as Dam-seo
- Hyun Woo as Yoon (King Gyeongjong)
Supporting cast
- Im Hyun-sik as Nam Dokkebi
- Ahn Gil-kang as Kim Che-gun
- Song Jong-ho as Kim Yi-soo
- Ji Il-joo as Moo-myung
- Han Jung-soo as Hwang Jin-gi
- Han Ki-woong as Sa Woon
- Han Ki-won as Sa Mo
- Oh Yeon-ah as Jang Ok-jung
- Yoon Ji-hye as Hong-Mae
- Lee Moon-sik as Baek Man-geum
- Jeon Soo-jin as Hwanggoo Mom
- Kim Yoo-chul as Daegari
- Jun Jae-hyung as Gamoolchi
- Baek Seung-hyeon as Jang Hee-jae (Jang Ok-jung's brother)
- Heo Tae-hee as Sang-gil (Yeongjo's bodyguard)
- Lee Ga-hyun as Hwa-jin
- Cha Soon-bae as Jo Tae-gu
- Na Jae-woong as Choi Seok-hang
- Kim Ga-eun as Gye Sul-im
- Kim Sung-oh as Hwanghae-do's Gaejakdoo
- Hong Ah-reum as Yeon Hwa
Ratings
In the table below, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.
| Episode # | Original broadcast date | Average audience share | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TNmS Ratings | AGB Nielsen | |||||
| Nationwide | Seoul National Capital Area | Nationwide | Seoul National Capital Area | |||
| 1 | March 28, 2016 | 9.5% | 11.1% | 11.8% | 13.0% | |
| 2 | March 29, 2016 | 9.9% | 11.0% | 12.2% | 13.7% | |
| 3 | April 4, 2016 | 9.1% | 10.1% | 11.6% | 12.5% | |
| 4 | April 5, 2016 | 8.9% | 10.4% | 9.5% | 10.4% | |
| 5 | April 11, 2016 | 8.6% | 10.4% | 9.2% | 9.8% | |
| 6 | April 12, 2016 | 8.0% | 10.2% | 8.4% | 9.3% | |
| 7 | April 18, 2016 | 8.1% | 9.3% | 9.1% | 8.9% | |
| 8 | April 19, 2016 | 7.7% | 9.2% | 8.7% | 9.1% | |
| 9 | April 25, 2016 | 8.2% | 9.5% | 8.0% | 8.5% | |
| 10 | April 26, 2016 | 8.1% | 9.5% | 8.9% | 9.7% | |
| 11 | May 2, 2016 | 8.3% | 10.5% | 8.9% | 9.4% | |
| 12 | May 3, 2016 | 8.8% | 10.8% | 9.2% | 9.8% | |
| 13 | May 9, 2016 | 8.5% | 9.8% | 8.7% | 9.3% | |
| 14 | May 10, 2016 | 8.6% | 11.3% | 8.4% | 8.8% | |
| 15 | May 16, 2016 | 8.1% | 9.4% | 8.4% | 8.3% | |
| 16 | May 17, 2016 | 8.0% | 8.8% | 9.6% | 10.4% | |
| 17 | May 23, 2016 | 7.5% | 8.7% | 9.5% | 10.5% | |
| 18 | May 24, 2016 | 7.6% | 8.6% | 8.5% | 8.8% | |
| 19 | May 30, 2016 | 7.6% | 9.3% | 7.7% | 7.8% | |
| 20 | May 31, 2016 | 6.8% | 7.9% | 8.1% | 8.1% | |
| 21 | June 6, 2016 | 8.6% | 10.2% | 10.3% | 11.4% | |
| 22 | June 7, 2016 | 8.9% | 10.8% | 9.9% | 10.0% | |
| 23 | June 13, 2016 | 8.6% | 10.3% | 9.2% | 9.1% | |
| 24 | June 14, 2016 | 9.0% | 10.6% | 10.0% | 10.2% | |
| Average | 8.4% | 9.9% | 9.3% | 9.9% | ||
Original soundtrack
| The Royal Gambler OST | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by Various artists | |
| Recorded | 2016 |
| Genre | Soundtrack |
| Language | Korean |
| Label | Loen Entertainment |
OST Part 1
| No. | Title | Artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Time Stops (시간이 멈추면)" | Park Wan-kyu | 4:07 |
| 2. | "Time Stops (시간이 멈추면)" (Inst.) | 4:07 | |
| Total length: | 8:14 | ||
OST Part 2
| No. | Title | Artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Miss You (그리워)" | Kim Bo-hyung (Spica) | 3:32 |
| 2. | "I Miss You (그리워)" (Inst.) | 3:32 | |
| Total length: | 7:04 | ||
OST Part 3
| No. | Title | Artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Want To Love You (사랑하고 싶다)" | Postmen | 4:17 |
| 2. | "I Want To Love You (사랑하고 싶다)" (Inst.) | 4:17 | |
| Total length: | 8:34 | ||
OST Part 4
| No. | Title | Artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Same Wish (같은 소원)" | Cheon Dan-bi | 4:02 |
| 2. | "Same Wish (같은 소원)" (Inst.) | 4:02 | |
| Total length: | 8:04 | ||
International broadcast
In the United States, the drama airs in the Los Angeles DMA free, over-the-air on LA 18 KSCI-TV (channel 18) with English subtitles, Mon-Tue 9:15PM, from April 25 to July 12, 2016.
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5th APAN Star Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama | Choi Min-soo | Nominated |
| Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama | Jang Keun-suk | Nominated | ||
| SBS Drama Awards | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Jang Keun-suk | Nominated | |
| Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama | Won | |||
| Choi Min-soo | Nominated | |||
| Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Serial Drama | Yoon Jin-seo | Nominated | ||
| Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama | Yeo Jin-goo | Won | ||
| Best Couple Award | Jang Keun-suk and Yeo Jin-goo | Nominated | ||
| Top 10 Stars Award | Jang Keun-suk | Won | ||
| Idol Academy Award – Best "Drudge" | Nominated | |||
| Idol Academy Award – Best Eating | Jun Kwang-ryul | Nominated |
References
- 여진구, 무시무시한 카리스마 "도성 향해 고개도 들지마라" 《The Royal Gambler》 대박 EP24. YouTube (in Korean). SBS Drama. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
- "Actor Jang Keun-suk wants to start anew with 'The Royal Gambler'". 2016-03-23. Archived from the original on 2016-04-28. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
- "TNMS Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". TNMS Ratings (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 28, 2013. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
- "AGB Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved May 6, 2016.
- "The Royal Gambler - LA18 Mon-Tues Korean Drama". Archived from the original on 2016-05-09. Retrieved 2016-04-22.
External links
- Official website (in Korean)
- The Royal Gambler at HanCinema