2025 is shaping up to be the year of the action-packed K-drama—and not just because of Squid Game's final season. First, the medical series Trauma Code: Heroes on Call became the surprise hit K-drama of January. Now, Study Group, a high-school-set action comedy, has taken the Korean entertainment fandom by storm.
Based on the webtoon of the same name, Study Group follows Yoon Ga-min (Hwang Min-hyun), a student at the violent Yuseong Techincal High School who's great at fighting, but horrible at studying. He forms a study group to improve his grades, but when his new friends get bullied, the martial arts prodigy has to fight his way to the top at the school.
With all 10 episodes out on Viki, fans of this hilarious underdog story have been clamoring for any news of Study Group's return. Read on for everything we know about a possible Study Group season 2 so far.
Is 'Study Group' renewed for season 2?
Korean streamer TVING hasn't revealed whether Study Group will be renewed for season 2, but the odds are looking good so far. The show has been a smash hit in both South Korea and globally, ranking among Viki's Top 5 in over 147 countries, per Soompi. Plus, the finale ends with Ga-min teasing via voiceover, "Our college entrance journey continues."
It's unknown when renewal news could drop, but fans may be waiting a while, due to the cast's schedule. Ga-min actor Hwang Min-hyun began his mandatory military service on March 21, 2024, and he's expected to be discharged in December 2025.
Who in the 'Study Group' cast would return for season 2?
In addition to Hwang, most of the show's main cast is expected to return for a possible season 2, including Han Ji-eun (Lee Hye-gyeong), Lee Jong-hyun (Se-hyeon), Shin Su-hyun (Ji-woo), Yoon Sang-jung (Hee-won), Gong Do-yu (Lee Jun), Ju Yeon-u (Sun-chul), and Hong Min-ki (Geon-yeop).
The study group, from left: Se-hyeon (Lee Jong-hyun), Ga-min (Hwang Min-hyun), Hee-won (Yoon Sang-jung), Ji-woo (Shin Su-hyun), and Lee Jun (Gong Do-yu).
What would 'Study Group' season 2 be about?
Spoilers for Study Group season 1's finale ahead. The first season of Study Group follows two main characters: Ga-min, as he recruits the study group, and kindhearted new teacher Lee Han-gyeong (Han Ji-eun), as she tries to make the school a better place. Their parallel goals put the duo up against Pi Han-wool (Cha Woo-min), Yuseong's number 1 student and the son of the leader of the Yeonbaek Gang. The season finale leads to a disciplinary meeting against Han-wool, where Lee Ssaem (or Miss Lee) hopes to get the troublemaker expelled. On the night before the meeting, Han-wool leads Lee Ssaem to the school grounds, to attack her the same way he attacked the first teacher who tried to have him expelled.
After a climactic brawl, in which the study group comes together to protect Lee Ssaem, Ga-min defeats Han-wool and Hee-won keeps the teacher safe. The disciplinary meeting is successful the next day, with Han-wool getting expelled and arrested as a suspect in the death of the former teacher (who was also Geon-yeop's mom). The season ends with Ga-min, the study group, and the school headed toward a brighter future. That is, until the post-credit scene, when Lee Ssaem leaves her resignation letter on her desk!
A post-credits scene shows Lee Han-gyeong (Han Ji-eun) handing in her resignation from Yuseong.
As with most series set in high school, the plot of Study Group is naturally set up for more seasons, since Ga-min and most other group members are nowhere near their college entrance exams. The source webtoon also has more material to cover; season 1 of the drama faithfully covered the first installment of the comic, which is on its third season. (The official English translation for the first two seasons is available on the WEBTOON app.)
As for what else may happen in season 2, Pi Han-wool could return to threaten the group again. In a brief scene from the season 1 finale, his kingpin father Pi Yeon-baek (Lee Jong-hyuk) assures that he'll "take care" of his son's charges, so the menace will likely walk free. Webtoon readers know that the Yeonbaek Gang and Geon-yeop's ongoing quest for vengeance for his mother's death will also be a factor. In the finale, he gets a text message about an internship for YB Group, a.k.a. Pi Yeon-baek's company. Geon-yeop's storyline in the show is slightly changed from the source webtoon, so we'll have to see what the show's writers have in store for the character.
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