Reborn Rookie
2026 South Korean television series
Reborn Rookie (Korean: 신입사원 강회장) is a 2026 South Korean workplace fantasy revenge comedy television series created by Kim Soon-ok, written by Hyun Ji-min, directed by Go Hye-jin, and starring Lee Jun-young, Son Hyun-joo, Lee Ju-myoung, Jeon Hye-jin, and Jin Goo. Based on the web novel The New Employee Chairman Kang by San Kyung, the series depicts the journey of Chairman Kang Yong-ho, who, after an accident, swaps souls with a young man named Hwang Jun-hyeon and becomes an employee at his own company. It aired on JTBC from May 30, to July 5, 2026, every Saturday at 22:40 (KST) and Sunday at 22:30 (KST). It is also available for streaming on TVING in South Korea and on Viu and Rakuten Viki in selected regions.
The series was a critical and commercial success. It was praised for its gripping storytelling, complex business scenarios, and passionate acting performances from the cast, with Lee Jun-young as the standout amongst critics and audiences for his double portrayal of both a young soccer player and an elderly conglomerate chairman. Commercially, the series finale recorded a nationwide rating of 13.6%, making it one of the highest-rated dramas in Korean cable television history.
Synopsis
Hwang Jun-hyeon, a Choiseong FC soccer player, and Kang Yong-ho, the chairman of the Choiseong Group, cross paths when the chairman's son, Kang Jae-sung, viciously hits Jun-hyeon with the chairman's car while attempting to hide his and his twin sister Kang Jae-gyeong's embezzlement. Angered by the abrupt end of his soccer career and the ₩400 million penalty fee he is required to pay back, Jun-hyeon confronts Chairman Kang, but the two end up accidentally head-butting each other while falling down the stairs. After waking up in the hospital, Chairman Kang encounters a shocking revelation—his soul now inhabits the body of Jun-hyeon while Jun-hyeon's soul is in his original body, fast asleep in a coma.
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Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q136714294. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2026.
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