Taxi Driver (South Korean TV series)

Taxi Driver is a South Korean television series starring Lee Je-hoon, Kim Eui-sung, Pyo Ye-jin, Jang Hyuk-jin, Bae Yoo-ram with Esom in first season and Shin Jae-ha in second season. Based on the webtoon The Deluxe Taxi (Red Cage) by Carlos and Lee Jae-jin. The first season aired on SBS TV from April 9, to May 29, 2021, every Friday and Saturday at 22:00 (KST). The second season aired on SBS TV from February 17, to April 15, 2023, every Friday and Saturday at 22:00 (KST). On April 15th 2023 hours after the Season 2 finale, a third season has been confirmed. It is also available for streaming on Wavve in South Korea, on Kocowa in the Americas, and on Netflix, Viki and Viu in selected regions. OTT platforms:

The series is inspired by actual real life heinous crimes committed in Korea. The series received praise from viewers for its performances and storylines.

The first season finale achieved the fourth highest rating of any Friday-Saturday drama in SBS history. The second season finale earned a higher rating than the season one finale. It also set a new record for the highest ratings achieved by any miniseries thus far in 2023.

Premise
Kim Do-gi is a KMA graduate who works as a taxi driver for a company which offers a "revenge-call" service to its clients who have been wronged and helps them to exact vengeance.

Main

 * Lee Je-hoon as Kim Do-gi
 * A former 707th Special Mission Group captain who works for Rainbow Taxi Company after his mother was killed.


 * Esom as Kang Ha-na (season 1)
 * An elite prosecutor from the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office. She fights for justice and later becomes interested in Do-gi's work.


 * Kim Eui-sung as Jang Sung-chul
 * The CEO of Rainbow Taxi Company. He is also the Director of Blue Bird, a non-profit foundation created to help victims of crime. He is known to be ruthless to villains, and being very warm-hearted towards the victims of crime.


 * Pyo Ye-jin as Ahn Go-eun
 * A skilled hacker who works for Rainbow Taxi Company after her elder sister commits suicide.


 * Jang Hyuk-jin as Choi Kyung-goo
 * The lead mechanic of Rainbow Taxi Company. He was a development researcher for new automobiles in an automobile company.


 * Bae Yoo-ram as Park Jin-eon
 * The assistant mechanic of Rainbow Taxi Company. He was an aircraft maintenance mechanic in a well-known airline company.


 * Shin Jae-ha as On Ha-jun / Kim Dan-woo (season 2)
 * A new driver of Rainbow Taxi Company. He is later revealed to be a part of the Geumsa Organization.

Supporting

 * Cha Ji-yeon as Baek Sung-mi
 * The chairman of Nakwon C&C. Nicknamed "The Godmother", she is a very notorious and influential figure in the underground economy.


 * Yoo Seung-mok as Cho Jin-woo
 * The deputy chief prosecutor of the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office.


 * Lee Yoo-joon as Wang Min-ho
 * A prosecutor from the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office, working in Ha-na's office. He assists Ha-na in her cases.


 * Yu Yeon-su as So-eun
 * A prosecutor from the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office, working in Ha-na's office.


 * Lee Ho-cheol as Goo Seok-tae
 * The secretary of Sung-mi.


 * Cho Hyun-woo as Cho Do-chul
 * A sexual offender who was released from prison early.


 * Heo Jung-do as Park Dong-pil
 * A police captain from Seoul Jongam Police Station.


 * Park Jong-hwan as Park Hyeon-jo
 * A high-ranking police officer and an executive of Geumsa Organization who keeps an eye on Rainbow Taxi Company.

Others

 * Changsung Jeotgal Factory (Ep. 1–2)
 * Jo In as Kang Maria
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's first requester of the series. She is mentally handicapped and was unknowingly brought to work in the factory.


 * Tae Hang-ho as Park Ju-chan
 * The general manager of the factory. He resorts to labour exploitation, illegal confinement and habitual abusing of the workers.


 * Song Duk-ho as Cho Jong-geun
 * Ju-chan's younger brother-in-law.


 * Kim Do-yeon as Choi Jong-suk
 * The handler who was responsible for bringing Maria to work at the factory.


 * Jo Dae-hee as Kim Hyung-wook
 * A police chief of a countryside police station. He is corrupt, as he is under the payroll of Ju-chan.


 * Sejung High School (Ep. 3–4)
 * Park Joon-mok as Park Jung-min
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's second requester of the series. A sophomore student who has been bullied by Park Seung-tae and his friends frequently.


 * Choi Hyun-wook as Park Seung-tae
 * A schoolmate of Park Jung-min. He frequently bullies Jung-min.


 * Lee Jae-hak as Jang Hyung-sik
 * A friend of Seung-tae. He helps Seung-tae in bullying Jung-min.


 * Lee Min-jae as Oh Hak-soo
 * A friend of Seung-tae. He helps Seung-tae in bullying Jung-min.


 * U Data (Ep. 5–8)
 * Jeon Sung-il as Seo Young-min
 * A former U Data employee who was abused by Park Yang-jin. Do-gi personally accepts to seek revenge for him, which is different from the previous two cases.


 * Baek Hyun-jin as Park Yang-jin
 * The chairman of U Data. He is frequently abusive to his employees whenever something bad happens, and even has resorted to gaslighting them.


 * Cho Ha-seok as Director Jung
 * Kim Jae-young as Mr. Lee
 * A head of department in U Data.


 * Lee Da-il as Mr. Ahn
 * A department manager in U Data.


 * Kwak Min-gyu as Jeon Jin-won
 * A former U Data employee.


 * Ryu Yi-jae as Ahn Jung-eun
 * Go-eun's elder sister who has passed away.


 * Seo Han-gyeol as Choi Min
 * Jung-eun's boyfriend.


 * Voice Phishing Organisation (Ep. 9–10)
 * Shim So-young as Lim Bok-ja
 * The boss of a voice phishing organisation, located within a Chinese food restaurant.


 * Kim Dae-gon as Madame Lim's employee (Ep. 9–10)
 * Nakwon C&C/Embassy of Bahamas (Ep. 11–14)
 * Lee Ho-cheol as Goo Young-tae
 * Seok-tae's twin brother, and the junior managing director of Nakwon C&C.


 * Jung Kang-hee as Shim Woo-seob
 * Han Kyu-won as Go Dong-hee
 * Han Hyun-ah as Lee Hye-yeon
 * Dong-hee's girlfriend.


 * Lee Yoon-hee as Pastor Go
 * Dong-hee's father.


 * Lee Ha-eun as Dong-hee's younger sister
 * Finale (Ep. 15–16)
 * Yang Dong-tak as Oh Chul-young
 * A serial killer who murdered Sung-chul's parents and Do-gi's mother.


 * Jeon Seok-chan as Kim Chul-jin
 * A man who was wrongfully jailed 20 years behind bars for a murder case, which was actually committed by Chul-young.


 * Ryu Sung-rok as Han Dong-chan / Oh Hyun-soo
 * The son of Chul-young and a prison guard.


 * Vietnam Kidnap Group (Ep. 1–2)
 * Choi One as Lee Joon-beom
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's first requester of Season 2. He was searching for his missing son, Lee Dong-jae, for the past year.


 * Zo Zee-an as Lee Dong-jae
 * A missing young man suspected to be a victim of crime.


 * Yoon Seok-hyun as Sang-man
 * The manager of Cheongeum International.


 * Kim Jeong-hoon as a tour guide
 * Lee Kyu-ho as Kwon Du-sik
 * The boss of Cheongeum International's illegal gambling sites department.


 * Park Seong-geun as Kim Hyung-sub
 * The head of the Seoul Northeast Police Station's violent team and the chairman of Cheongeum International.


 * Yongsori Village (Ep. 3–4)
 * Byun Joong-hee as Lee Im-soon
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's second requester of Season 2. She was the victim of a previous scam operation by Yoo Sang-gi.


 * Ko Sang-ho as Yoo Sang-gi
 * A professional scammer who mainly targets on the elderly. He purchased spoilt devices, and resold them as usable devices in order to scam victims.


 * Kang Young-taek as Lee Dong-geun
 * A gang member who works under Sang-gi.


 * Yoo Dong-hoon as Goo Jae-seung
 * A gang member who works under Sang-gi.


 * Lee Kwang-hoon as Yong-chil
 * A phone seller who worked together with Sang-gi.


 * Shin Kang-gyun as Lee Deok-goo
 * An elderly man staying in Yongsori Village who almost became a victim of Sang-gi's scam operation.


 * Feel Consulting (Ep. 5–6)
 * Ahn Chae-heum as Hwang Seo-yeon
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's third requester of Season 2. She was a victim of child abuse.


 * Kim Do-yoon as Kang Pil-seung
 * Nicknamed Kang Pro, he is Feel Consulting's representative. He has Mysophobia.


 * Kwon Na-hyun as Park So-mang
 * Seo-yeon's adoptive younger sister.


 * Jeong Young-gi as Park Joon-bin
 * Feel Consulting's lead manager.


 * Soonbaek Cult (Ep. 7–8)
 * Kim Eun-bi as Lee Jin-hee
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's fourth requester of Season 2. She was searching for her older sister, Lee Jin-seon, who has fallen into a cult.


 * Ahn Sung-woo as Ok Joo-man
 * A pastor and leader of the cult pseudo-churches that are committing crimes.


 * Jung Ji-woo as Lee Jin-seon
 * Jin-hee's sister who is a victim of a pseudo-church.


 * Seo Ji-soo as Joo-man's lover
 * Jeil Chakhan Hospital (Ep. 9–10)
 * Jung Ki-seob as Han Jae-deok
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's fifth requester of Season 2. He is on a one-man protest against Jeil Chakhan Hospital, which put her daughter in a coma due to a medical malpractice.


 * Lee Hang-na as Ahn Young-sook
 * The chief director of Jeil Chakhan Hospital.


 * Kang Seol as Han Soo-ryeon
 * Jae-deok's daughter and an athlete. She is under comatose status due to a medical malpractice.


 * Kim Jae-min as Gong Soo-ho
 * A manager of Meditopia's medical sales team. He acts as a proxy for Young-sook.


 * Kim Young-jin as Manager Kim
 * Young-sook's close friend.


 * Black Sun (Ep. 11–14)
 * Baek Soo-jang as Kim Yong-min
 * Rainbow Taxi Company's sixth requester of Season 2. He formerly works as a reporter under Hanbaek Ilbo.


 * Jang In-sub as Choi Seong-eun
 * A police officer who died while investigating Black Sun with Yong-min.


 * Kim Chae-eun as Windy
 * An agent of Black Sun.


 * Jeon Woon-jong as Cho Gyeong-jang
 * A police officer who works with Black Sun.


 * Go Geon-han as Victor
 * An idol and VIP member of Black Sun.


 * Lee Dal as Min Jong-seon
 * The head of the Black Sun's guards.


 * Moon Jae-won as Yoo Moon-hyeon
 * Black Sun's manager.


 * Jeon Jun-ho as No. 12
 * Black Sun's guards.


 * Yoo Ji-yeon as Yang Mi-kyung
 * VIP member of Black Sun.


 * Finale (Geumsa Organization) (Ep. 15–16)
 * Park Ho-san as Park Min-geon
 * Also known as the Bishop, he is the head of Geumsa Organization. He has been planning his revenge against the Rainbow crew for years, particularly harbouring a disturbing decades-long obsession and jealousy towards Do-Gi for currently unknown reasons and his desire to kill and overthrow him.


 * Kim Chang-hwan as Lee Si-wan
 * A bank teller in charge of foreign exchange transactions and reported it to the prosecution. He was arrested on the false charge of attempted murder.


 * Yoon Sang-ho as Bae Ki-seok
 * A prison warden chief of the Jangsa Prison, and a member of the Geumsa Organization.

Special appearances

 * Yoon Do-hyun as Driver Yoon (Ep. 1)
 * Lee Young-ae (voice appearance)
 * Park Geun-hyung as Sung-mi's husband (Ep. 13)
 * Park Jin-hee as Do Joong-won (Ep. 16)
 * Jin-woo's replacement as deputy chief prosecutor of the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office.


 * Ryu Hyun-kyung as Baek Kyung-mi (Ep. 16)
 * Sung-mi's younger sister.


 * Yoon Sung-yeo as himself (Ep. 15)
 * A real-life suspect of the Hwaseong serial murders who was wrongfully convicted of and sentenced to life imprisonment for one of the murders


 * Lee Young-ae (voice appearance)
 * Shim So-young as Lim Bok-ja (Ep. 1-2)
 * Namkoong Min as Chun Ji-hoon (Ep. 9)
 * Yoo Seung-mok as Cho Jin-woo (Ep. 9)
 * Cho Jung-sik and Joo Si-eun as MCs of a talk show (Ep. 10)
 * Kim So-yeon as the first deluxe taxi driver (Ep. 16)
 * Moon Chae-won as Oh Mi-seo (Ep. 16)
 * Writer Oh Sang-ho as a bartender (Ep. 16)
 * Son Jung-woo as a bartender (Ep. 16)

Development
On December 4, 2019, it was reported that SBS was considering adapting the webtoon The Deluxe Taxi by Carlos and Lee Jae-jin into a television series. Korean streaming platform Wavve was also invested in the series, has also reported that it has previously invested in several other series such as Zombie Detective (2020), Bossam: Steal the Fate (2021), and Alice (2020).

Casting
On November 20, 2020, Lee Je-hoon, Esom, Kim Eui-sung and Lee Na-eun were confirmed to star in the series. On March 8, 2021, Lee Na-eun officially left the cast following bullying accusations made against her. Two days later, it was announced that Pyo Ye-jin would replace Lee Na-eun.

Filming
As of March 8, 2021, about 60% of filming was complete, though scenes featuring Lee Na-eun were scheduled to be re-shot following her removal from the cast.

Season 2
On July 6, 2021, SBS announced the production of second season. On March 8, 2022, it was reported that Esom will be withdrawing from Season 2 due to scheduling inconsistencies.

On June 8, 2022, it was confirmed that Lee Je-hoon and Pyo Ye-jin will reprise their respective roles in Season 2, and a script reading will take place on June 12, 2022. Season 2 is expected to air in 2023. A day later, Kim Eui-sung, Jang Hyuk-jin and Bae Yoo-ram also confirmed to reprise their roles.

Season 2 marks the reunion of Shin Jae-ha and Pyo Ye-jin after working together in the drama VIP.

Filming
On July 15, 2022, it was confirmed by SBS that some of the staff had tested positive for COVID-19, causing filming in Vietnam to temporarily halt.

Season 3
On April 16, 2023, SBS confirmed that a third season was in the works and was in talks with the cast to return.

Release
The first teaser video and teaser poster were released on December 31, 2020.

To promote the second season of the K-drama, Viu, which they brought Season 2 under the Viu Original banner, has invite Lee Je-hoon on his first ever fan-meeting in the Philippines on March 3, 2023, in Jakarta, Indonesia on March 19, 2023 and in Singapore on March 25, 2023. Lee also participated in FilMart in Hong Kong, where Viu unveiled Season 2 of the series became the most watched following the premiere.

Season 1

 * Part 1


 * Part 2


 * Part 3


 * Part 4


 * Part 5


 * Part 6


 * Part 7

Season 2

 * Part 1


 * Part 2


 * Part 3


 * Part 4


 * Part 5


 * Part 6