Mnet’s “Kingdom” Won’t Be Broadcast In 2020, Here’s Why

It won’t be happening.

Mnet‘s comeback war variety show Kingdom will not be broadcast in 2020 due to issues with their casting lineup and criticism of favoritism.

According to an exclusive report from Ilgan Sports on July 29, it is unlikely Kingdom will be broadcast in the second half of 2020 due to several problems. One of these issues is the lineup. The production team has had to revise their lineup for the show several times, as they are attempting to keep their lineup secret, unlike Road to Kingdom.

When we did Road to Kingdom, many of our artists for the lineup were revealed in advance. We will try to prepare our lineup more carefully.

— Road to Kingdom CP Park Chan Wook

However, it is extremely difficult to have secrets when casting groups for a show like this and in fact, rumors have spread surround the groups that will appear on Kingdom, and their agencies have received several inquiries about the validity of the rumors.

Due to the nature of the show, there was also a lot of burden for the artists themselves, as the show is a competitions ranking the idols against themselves. Agencies had to actually persuade their artists to appear on the show, and the agencies also had to pay for the huge production costs for their high-quality stages.

Another issues that arose was how Mnet is showing favoritism, especially on Road To Kingdom with their group TOO. TOO was on the show before ever debuting, competing against five year veteran group PENTAGON. Recently at their showcase, TOO acknowledged how their public recognition has increased, likely due to Road to Kingdom. This issue is again popping up for the Kingdom artist lineup, where groups that have members that were on Mnet audition programs are being forced to join the show. Rumors are flying that there have been a series of complaints about CJ ENM prioritizing the groups it invests in.

The final issue is that Road to Kingdom simply was not as successful as its predecessor, Queendom. While Road to Kingdom was highly watched by the fans of the groups on the show, it failed to gain any recognition from the general public. Agencies are concerned about whether Kingdom will follow the same path as Road to Kingdom in viewer ratings. All of these issues are why Kingdom may not happen in 2020.

I heard about the story of Kingdom. From what I understand, it won’t be happening this year.

— Insider

The organization of the show Kingdom has not yet been confirmed.

— Mnet

Source: Ilgan Sports