General · EdgepediaOctober 3, 20265 min read

Believer 2 (독전 2)

Believer 2 (독전 2) is a 2023 South Korean crime action film written and directed by Baek Jong-yeol, also credited as Baik, and released as a Netflix original film on November 17, 2023. It is a follow-up to the 2018 film Believer, continuing Detective Cho Won-ho's pursuit of the unseen boss of Asia's largest drug cartel, a figure known as Mr. Lee.¹^•²

Key fact	Detail
Release	Netflix original film, November 17, 2023; 116 minutes²
Director	Baek Jong-yeol (Baik), director of The Beauty Inside (2015)¹^•³
Structure	A midquel, covering the 30 days left out of the first film rather than continuing after it⁴
Lead cast	Cho Jin-woong, Cha Seung-won, Han Hyo-joo, Oh Seung-hoon, Kim Dong-young, Lee Joo-young⁵
Recasting	Oh Seung-hoon took over the role of Rak from Ryu Jun-yeol, who could not participate⁵
Filming locations	South Korea, Thailand, and Norway; the story is set primarily in Seoul¹
Reception	71% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (7 reviews) and 51% from audiences; 5.6 on IMDb⁶

Spoilers

Premise and story

The film resumes the plot of Believer (2018), in which Detective Won-ho (Cho Jin-woong) hunts the kingpin of Asia's largest drug cartel, a maker of a powerful illicit drug called Laika. At the end of the first film, an explosion at an illegal drug factory killed Won-ho's colleague Dong-u, and Rak, the sole survivor along with an injured dog, disappeared. In the sequel, Won-ho searches for Rak, who has been acting as the elusive Mr. Lee, while Rak himself insists he is not the real Mr. Lee and wants to find the person who is. Rak has no means to produce Laika because the police seized the ingredients, so he and two drug cooks plan to follow the movements of the Chinese drug lord Big Knife, whom Rak says will lead them to Mr. Lee. Meanwhile Director Brian, burned and left for dead by Rak's group, escapes from hospital custody and seeks revenge by telling Big Knife that Rak holds the money and ingredients for Laika, a lie.¹

The Korean Film Council's synopsis describes the film as using the Yongsan Station scene, the twist that ended the first film, as its starting point, returning to the question "Who is Mr. Lee?" and building a new, expanded story with heightened stakes and more action sequences.⁷

Cast and characters

Netflix confirmed the cast in June 2022: Jo Jin Woong returning as Detective Won Ho, Cha Seung Won returning as Brian, the cartel's hidden power, and new additions Han Hyo Joo as Big Knife, a figure who knows the identity of the cartel's boss, and Oh Seung Hoon as Rak. Kim Dong Young and Lee Joo Young also returned as the drug-making siblings Manco and Rona. Ryu Jun Yeol, who played Rak in the first film, and Jin Seo Yeon were unable to participate.⁵ In the Tudum cast list, Oh Seung-hoon's character is described as Seo Yeong-rak, a former assistant manager for the drug peddler Ewoo Shipping, and Cha Seung-won plays Director Brian Lee, believed to be the head of Asia's largest drug cartel.¹

The midquel structure

Rather than continuing after the first film's ending, Believer 2 takes place during the story of Believer, filling in the 30 days the first film left out. According to the Korea JoongAng Daily, this midquel concept was unfamiliar to Korean movie audiences and had not been tried in a Korean film before; actor Cha Seung-won said he was surprised when he read the script and that the director and cast worried about making the story work within the frame of the original film.⁴

Production

Netflix announced the sequel in June 2022 as a Netflix original film, with Cho Jin-woong and Cha Seung-won returning and Han Hyo-joo and Oh Seung-hoon joining. The first film had sold over 5.2 million tickets in South Korean theaters. Reports at the time said filming would begin soon with plans to film abroad, and production plans also reportedly included a drama series titled Believer 0.³^•⁵ The finished film was shot in South Korea, Thailand, and Norway.¹ The British Board of Film Classification classified the 116-minute film for VOD/streaming on November 16, 2023, with advice for injury detail and violence.²

Believer itself is a 2018 remake of Johnnie To's Hong Kong film Drug War, and the sequel premiered in the Korean Cinema Today - Special Premiere program at the Busan International Film Festival in 2023 before its Netflix release; it was also shown at the Paris Korean Film Festival.⁸^•⁷

Reception

The film reached No. 1 on Netflix's rankings for non-English language films after release, but viewer response was largely negative both in and outside Korea, including on Naver and the aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, where reviewers on IMDb called it a letdown.⁴ On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds 71% on the Tomatometer from 7 critics and 51% on the audience Popcornmeter; critics split between finding it a fun, violent entertainment and judging that its elements do not come together.⁶ The South China Morning Post's Busan review called it a bloodthirsty, nonsensical mess.⁸ Common Sense Media described the film as incredibly violent, bloody, and gory, built on familiar crime-thriller elements serving a traditional plot.⁹ Cha Seung-won later said he found middle ground on the film despite the negative reviews.⁴

References

Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Action, thriller, and crime series film entries › Entries released 2020s and later

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026

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