Disney Developing Adaptation of Korean Bestseller 'The Dallergut Dream Department Store'
Disney Live Action is developing a feature film adaptation of Miye Lee's novel The Dallergut Dream Department Store, with novelist and screenwriter Patrick Ness attached to write the screenplay, according to Deadline.
Lee's book was a number one bestseller in Korea and has sold more than two million copies across over 20 territories. It is the first instalment in a trilogy, which gives Disney a potential franchise should the adaptation move forward successfully.
Patrick Ness is a recognised name in literary screenwriting. He wrote the screenplay for A Monster Calls (2016), adapted from his own novel, and has worked across both film and television. His attachment signals that Disney is investing in a writer with a track record of handling emotionally layered, character-driven material.
Jessica Virtue, Disney Live Action's Executive Vice President of Production, is overseeing the project for the studio, per Deadline. Virtue's role places her at the centre of Disney's live-action development slate — the division responsible for the studio's string of remakes and literary adaptations.
For readers unfamiliar with the source material, The Dallergut Dream Department Store centres on a mysterious shop where dreams are bought and sold. The novel blends warmth and whimsy, which aligns with Disney's house style of fantasy grounded in emotional stakes.
The project is at the development stage, meaning no director, cast, or release date has been announced. Development is the earliest phase of a film's life — a studio commissions a script and assigns executives before committing to production. Many projects at this stage do not reach screens.
What gives this announcement its weight is the scale of the underlying property. Two million copies sold in over 20 territories is a substantial readership for a Korean novel that has only recently expanded into English-language markets. A trilogy structure gives Disney a clear path to sequels, the same arithmetic that has driven the studio's adaptations from Perc Jackson to The Chronicles of Narnia (a comparison of structure, not of tone).
Disney Live Action has leaned heavily on literary and intellectual-property adaptations in recent years, drawing from its own animated back catalogue and from external source material. A Korean bestseller entering that pipeline is a notable broadening of the studio's acquisition net, reflecting the growing international reach of Korean publishing across both literary fiction and genre.
No production timeline has been disclosed. The next milestones to watch for would be a director attachment, a greenlight decision, and a release-date claim — each a step that moves a project from page toward screens.
