South Korea Sends Lee Chang-dong's 'Possible Love' to the Oscars
South Korea has chosen Lee Chang-dong's Possible Love as its official entry for the international feature film category at the 99th Academy Awards, the Korean Film Council announced on August 25, 2026 (Yonhap).
The film is Lee's first feature in eight years, following a body of work that includes Burning (2018), Poetry (2010) and Secret Sunshine (2007). A 15-member selection committee chaired by film critic Jung Sung-il evaluated submissions and cited the film's polished craftsmanship and the clarity of its directorial vision in making the pick (Variety).
Possible Love centres on two married couples whose lives intersect after a funeral. It will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, followed by a North American premiere at the Toronto Film Festival (Variety). Both festivals serve as launch pads for awards-season campaigns, giving the film high-profile exposure ahead of its theatrical rollout.
Under Academy rules, an international feature entry must complete its local theatrical release by September 30. Possible Love meets that deadline: it opens in Korean cinemas on September 23, then expands to Australia on October 22 and to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Japan on October 23. A global streaming release on Netflix follows on November 6 (Variety).
The streaming date matters because Netflix is not simply submitting the film in the international feature category. A Netflix awards team is preparing a campaign that extends to a best picture push (Variety). The international feature category, formerly known as best foreign language film, honours a single submission per country; best picture is open to any eligible film regardless of origin or language.
South Korea's Oscar record adds context. The country has submitted films in the category since 1962. For decades, none advanced past the first round. Lee's own Burning became the first Korean title to reach the shortlist in 2018. Park Chan-wook's Decision to Leave (2022) and No Other Choice (2025) both made the shortlist as well, but neither landed a nomination. The breakthrough came in 2020, when Bong Joon Ho's Parasite won both the international feature category and best picture — the first non-English-language film to take the top prize (Variety).
Lee himself was among the Korean filmmakers recently invited to join the Academy as Oscar voters, alongside Park Chan-wook and Lee Byung-hun (Korean Film Council). The director has accumulated honours at home including Best Screenplay at the Baeksang Arts Awards and Best Picture and Best Director at the Blue Dragon Film Awards (Korean Film Council).
The 99th Academy Awards are scheduled for March 14, 2027 (Variety). Between now and then, Possible Love moves from Venice to Toronto to Korean cinemas, then to theatres across several markets, and finally to Netflix screens worldwide — all in the span of ten weeks.
