Disney's 'Bridgerton But Cooler' Series Premieres In Less Than 2 Weeks

3 hours ago 26

Published Oct 27, 2026, 6:30 PM EDT

Cher Thompson is a Senior Staff Writer at Screen Rant, where she covers everything from explosive reality TV moments to cast interviews about the twists and turns of scripted dramas. With a background in creative writing, marketing, and teaching, Cher knows how to spot both the storytelling genius and the guilty pleasures in pop culture. Her work blends wit with insight, making readers feel like they’re chatting with a friend who just happens to know way too much about TV.

Romantic period dramas like Bridgerton have been gaining traction over the past several years, and Disney's latest series that takes on the challenge premieres in just two short weeks. With shows like the Netflix hit using royal courts, aristocratic rivalries, and class-defined interpersonal relationships to bring private matters into the public eye, period romance dramas have been able to expose the complexities of a different time. While Bridgerton has focused on the matchmaking elements of the Regency era and honed in on social maneuvering, other period dramas are able to take other elements on, shining a spotlight on different complications.

The Remarried Empress, Disney+'s newest contender in the period drama space, is a Korean fantasy romance that brings a whole different world to life. Based on a popular WEBTOON series of the same name, the K-drama focuses on an empress whose husband falls in love with another woman and pushes her to make calculated political decisions in order to retain her standing. With romance still at the core of the series, the added drama of the political storyline allows the story to branch out from the typical fare of the Bridgerton style and into something with a further reach.

While Bridgerton season 5 is on its way, shows like The Remarried Empress are perfect for viewers who are looking for something similar, whether that's a period drama or a juicy romance. Coming to Disney+ this November, The Remarried Empress is a step into the K-drama world that fans of the Netflix series should gladly take.

The Remarried Empress Will Keep Bridgerton Fans Busy Before The Next Season

Still of the cast of The Remarried Empress posing together.

With Bridgerton returning in the new year, fans of period dramas finally have something to tide them over with the release of The Remarried Empress in the coming weeks. As one of Disney+'s additions to their growing K-drama collection, the series is Korean with English subtitles or dubbing available, but the story is able to sweep past any language barriers viewers may face. Telling the story of Navier (Shin Mina), the beloved Empress of the Eastern Empire, as her marriage to Emperor Sovieshu (Ju Jihoon) comes to a major impasse when he announces he's fallen in love with Rashta (Lee Seyoung), a runaway.

Navier, an intelligent and politically capable Empress, is accustomed to sharing power with her husband, but doesn't accept the idea of him leaving their marriage. Even when Sovieshu demands a divorce, Navier refuses to accept the end of her marriage without new conditions. The demands she puts in place, however, cause major political tension for the Eastern Empire, as she requests to marry Prince Heinrey (Lee Jongsuk) of the rival Western Kingdom. With the fallout of the romantic drama and the political crisis at the core of The Remarried Empress, the show offers more than expected to viewers.

Other Versions Of The Remarried Empress Explained

Still of Shin Mina as Empress Navier in The Remarried Empress.

The upcoming Disney+ version of The Remarried Empress is just one of several adaptations of the original WEBTOON comic. The comic is the most accessible way for English-language audiences to explore the source material before the upcoming adaptation, if they want to, as it's an entirely different experience than watching the live-action version. There is also another upcoming adaptation of The Remarried Empress that will be entirely different from the Disney+ version hitting the platform in the coming weeks. In 2027, a version of the story will be told in a new anime, bringing a different lens to the story.

For viewers, deciding where to start may be tricky, but diving into the WEBTOON version ahead of the Disney+ live-action adaptation could be well worth it. The comic version of the story is the one that's been around the longest, and it builds the foundation for the characters in a deliberate way. With the first episodes of The Remarried Empress hitting Disney+ on November 4, the rollout of the rest of the story will happen more gradually, with weekly releases through the end of November. The upcoming series brings Disney+ further into the K-drama world, and gives viewers a chance to see a beautiful story unfold.