In Netflix's 'If Wishes Could Kill', a Deadly App Revives Korean Shamanism for a New Generation

Key facts

• If Wishes Could Kill premiered on Netflix on April 24, 2025.
• The series has an 18+ rating for horror and violence.
• The Girigo app grants any wish but kills the user 24 hours later.
• Rookie actress Jeon So-young, 23, plays Yoo Se-ah.
• Jeon So-young has been compared to Song Hye-kyo and Hyeri.
• The drama features shaman characters Ha-sal (Jeon So-nee) and Bang Ui (Roh Jae-won).
• The app's origin involves students Kim Si-won and Do Hye-rung, who died after using it.
• Shamans have gained pop-culture prominence, e.g., the 2024 film Exhuma and Disney+ show Battle of the Fates.

A Wish, a Countdown, and a Classroom Suicide

In the opening episode of Netflix's new K-drama If Wishes Could Kill, class clown Hyeon-wook (Lee Hyo-je) aces a math test after using a mysterious app called Girigo. He gleefully shares the app with his four friends — Se-ah (Jeon So-young), Geon-woo (Baek Sun-ho), Na-ri (Kang Mi-na), and Ha-joon (Hyun Woo-seok) — believing he has found a godsend. They do not take it seriously until Hyeon-wook, seemingly driven by an unseen force, cuts his own throat in front of the class. The app, it turns out, grants any wish but starts a 24-hour countdown that ends in the user's death. The only way to stop the countdown is to convince someone else to make a wish — a chain-letter logic that forces the survivors to implicate others.

The Rules of the Curse and the Friends' Desperate Wishes

By the time Hyeon-wook dies, two other friends have already made wishes. Geon-woo, who has just started dating Se-ah, wishes that her weekend track training be canceled so she can attend Hyeon-wook's birthday party. Na-ri, drunk and annoyed, wishes for the deaths of Hyeon-wook and an older friend named Dong-jae. Na-ri's countdown stops when Geon-woo makes his wish, but Geon-woo now faces certain death. To save him, Se-ah makes a wish, starting her own countdown. With time running out, she and Ha-joon travel to the countryside to visit Ha-joon's older sister, Ha-sal (Jeon So-nee), a powerful shaman who lives with her boyfriend and fellow shaman Bang Ui (Roh Jae-won). Only those who have made a wish can see the ghosts that drive the curse, making them vulnerable to deceptive texts and calls that sow distrust.

The Shamanic Roots of the Horror

If Wishes Could Kill draws heavily on Korean shamanism, or mu-sok, an indigenous religion in which ancestral spirits influence human fortune. Shamans, known as mu-dang, act as intermediaries between the spirit and mortal worlds, offering healing, protection, and problem-solving. Most Korean shamans are women, and while they have faced stigma in modern society, they are experiencing a pop-culture renaissance. Recent examples include the 2024 horror film Exhuma, about shamans quelling a vengeful spirit, and the 2026 Disney+ reality competition show Battle of the Fates. The drama depicts its shaman characters as low-key warriors capable of great sacrifice and power, much like Exhuma did.

The App's Tragic Origin: Kim Si-won and Do Hye-rung

The Girigo app originates from a tragedy years before the protagonists enrolled at Seorin High School. Kim Si-won, the daughter of a local shaman, was ashamed of her mother's calling and blamed her for her father's death, often sleeping in an abandoned warehouse. Her only confidante at school was Do Hye-rung (Kim Si-ah). Si-won, a tech genius, joined an app coding challenge with popular students, including Hye-rung's crush Gi-tae. To avoid exposing her mother's identity, Si-won went along with a suggestion to create a wish-making app incorporating shamanism. When Si-won discovered that Hye-rung had been in touch with her alcoholic mother, she became furious and launched the app, sending a video of Hye-rung wishing for Gi-tae's love across the school. Gi-tae ridiculed and physically assaulted Hye-rung at Si-won's request.

A Bloody Wish That Empowered the App

Humiliated, Hye-rung used the app to wish death on Si-won and Gi-tae before killing herself. The wish worked, but before she died, Si-won made her own blood-soaked wish, giving the Girigo app its terrible, ongoing power. It is Si-won's spirit that drives the app's malevolence, though Hye-rung is also trapped by the curse. The series thus reimagines an age-old ghost story, blending Korean folk tradition with modern tech anxieties. The chain-letter logic — evade death by getting someone else to wish — creates a moral dilemma that drives the narrative.

Rising Star Jeon So-young Draws Comparisons to Song Hye-kyo

The series has brought attention to its young cast, particularly Jeon So-young, the 23-year-old rookie who plays Yoo Se-ah. Viewers have compared her visuals to those of top actresses Song Hye-kyo and Hyeri, noting similarities in her lips and lower facial features. Others have mentioned Han Hyo-joo, Park Ji-hoo, Go Ara, and Han Ji-hye. Netizens have commented that she has a memorable and charming visual, with one writing, "Her features feel both common and unique. At first glance, she looks like someone familiar, but the longer you look, the prettier she gets." Jeon So-young first appeared on screen in 2025 with supporting roles in dramas such as Kick Kick Kick Kick, Melo Movie, Crushology 101, Beyond the Bar, and My Youth. In 2026, she took a supporting role in Honour. Her role in If Wishes Could Kill marks a major step, and she is set to appear in Season 2 of the hit series Study Group.

A New Milestone for Occult K-Dramas

While South Korea has long excelled in horror cinema — with films like A Tale of Two Sisters, The Wailing, and Whispering Corridors — occult K-dramas have struggled to break through. Series like All of Us Are Dead and Sweet Home found success with zombie and monster horror, but If Wishes Could Kill aims to break the curse with its clever mix of teen drama, tech horror, and occult mystery. The eight-episode series, which premiered on Netflix on April 24, has quickly become a hot topic among viewers. Its 18+ rating reflects its dark atmosphere and suspenseful story. By grounding its horror in Korean shamanism and contemporary anxieties about technology, the drama offers a fresh take on the monkey's paw trope, keeping viewers guessing until the very end.

The bottom line

• If Wishes Could Kill is an eight-episode K-drama that premiered on Netflix on April 24, 2025, with an 18+ rating.
• The Girigo app grants any wish but kills the user after 24 hours; the countdown stops only if someone else makes a wish.
• The story is rooted in Korean shamanism (mu-sok), which is experiencing a pop-culture revival through films like Exhuma and shows like Battle of the Fates.
• The app's origin involves two students, Kim Si-won and Do Hye-rung, whose deaths empowered the curse.
• Rookie actress Jeon So-young, 23, has gained attention for her role as Yoo Se-ah, with viewers comparing her to Song Hye-kyo and Hyeri.
• The series blends teen drama, tech horror, and occult mystery, aiming to become the first breakout occult K-drama.