100 Days of Deception (2026): Cast, Story, 16 Episodes & Where to Watch
2026 K-drama · 100일의 거짓말 · Historical spy romance · 16 episodes planned · Spoiler-light English guide
100 Days of Deception begins with a woman who wants to escape Korea, not become a hero. In 1930s Gyeongseong, pickpocket Lee Ga-gyeong dreams of leaving for America. Instead, she becomes entangled with an independence movement and enters the Japanese colonial administration under a false identity. There she meets an elite interpreter whose own identity is more complicated than it first appears.
The result is a suspenseful mixture of espionage, romance and conflicting loyalties. For international audiences, however, the historical setting matters almost as much as the romance. “Gyeongseong,” “Government-General” and “miljeong” are not merely period-drama decoration: each reveals something about the colonial world the characters must navigate.
What is 100 Days of Deception about?
The Korean title is 100일의 거짓말 (literally “100 Days of Lies”). The story centers on Lee Ga-gyeong, a skilled pickpocket who plans to build a different life overseas. After becoming involved with members of the Korean independence movement, she agrees to infiltrate the Government-General of Korea, the institution through which Imperial Japan ruled colonial Korea.
Inside that dangerous bureaucracy, she encounters interpreter Sato Hideo, also known as Kim Tae-woong. Both have reasons to conceal who they really are. Their developing connection becomes entangled with intelligence gathering, resistance operations and the consequences of being discovered.
What the title means: the “100 days” refer to the story’s undercover mission, not a 100-episode television run. The series is a fictional historical romance and thriller, not a documentary or a depiction of a single verified resistance operation.
Quick facts
- Korean title: 100일의 거짓말
- English title: 100 Days of Deception
- Broadcaster: tvN, South Korea
- First broadcast: October 10, 2026
- Schedule: Saturdays and Sundays at 9:10 p.m. Korean time, according to tvN
- Episode count: 16 planned; the announced run ends November 29, 2026, subject to schedule changes
- Genre: Period drama, espionage, political suspense, romance
- Directors: Yoo In-sik and Kim Youn-jin
- Writer: Rheu Bo-ri (Ryu Bo-ri)
- Setting: Gyeongseong (colonial-era Seoul), in the early 1930s
Main cast and characters
Kim You-jung as Lee Ga-gyeong (이가경)
Ga-gyeong’s exceptional pickpocketing skills make her useful for a mission far riskier than the crimes she knows. Her initial goal is survival and freedom abroad; the operation forces her to confront the political world she hoped to escape.
Park Jin-young as Kim Tae-woong / Sato Hideo (김태웅 / 사토 히데오)
An elite interpreter working within the colonial administration, he stands at the intersection of language, authority and hidden identity. His relationship with Ga-gyeong raises difficult questions about whom a person serves and what a name can conceal.
Kim Hyun-joo as Yu So-ran (유소란)
So-ran is a resistance fighter and sharpshooter associated with the fictional anti-colonial group in the story. She helps bring the liberation struggle directly into Ga-gyeong’s personal choices.
Lee Mu-saeng as Yu Philip (유필립)
Philip is an American newspaper correspondent connected with the resistance narrative. His presence adds a transnational dimension to a story that moves between colonial Korea and independence networks abroad.
Jin Sun-kyu as Sato Shinichi (사토 신이치)
A senior official in the Japanese colonial administration, Sato Shinichi represents the state power against which the undercover operation takes place.
Where can you watch it?
Netflix: Netflix has an official 100 Days of Deception title page. As with all licensed series, viewing availability and subtitle options depend on your country and account.
TVING: Korean audiences can consult the official TVING listing for episodes and local access conditions. tvN: the series airs on the channel’s announced Saturday–Sunday schedule.
As of November 2, 2026, episodes 1–8 have reached their announced broadcast dates. Later episodes are not treated as released in this guide, and no finale spoilers are included.
Three historical details worth understanding
1. Gyeongseong was not simply “old Seoul”
Gyeongseong was the colonial-era administrative name used for Seoul. Its streets combined trams, modern shopping areas and cafés with segregation and unequal access to power. A beautiful period set should not make us forget who controlled the city.
2. The Government-General was a colonial governing institution
The Government-General of Korea was Imperial Japan’s ruling apparatus in Korea from 1910 to 1945. It exercised extraordinary administrative and coercive authority. Working inside that institution is therefore fundamentally different from taking an ordinary civil-service job.
3. Translation can be political power
In a multilingual colonial environment, knowing Korean and Japanese—and, for some characters, English—could give a person privileged access to information. An interpreter might hear what two sides intend, but also face pressure about what to convey and whom to trust. The show turns language itself into an espionage device.
Is the series based on a true story?
The background of Japanese colonial rule and Korean independence movements is historical. Ga-gyeong’s mission, the central romance and the specific organization shown in the drama belong to a scripted fictional plot. It is useful to distinguish the two: real institutions and political conditions can surround invented characters and operations.
The historical era deserves careful treatment. Colonial Gyeongseong had genuine cultural and technological modernity, but that did not make Japanese rule benign. Korean independence movements operated domestically and across borders, notably in China. The series uses this historical tension as the backdrop for personal drama.
Go beyond the subtitles
Our free 8-question cultural explainer asks about the story’s world: Why was Seoul called Gyeongseong? What exactly was the Government-General? Does “miljeong” always mean the same thing? Why does Sato Hideo have another name? What role did Shanghai play? These are the details that make a spy romance feel different from a modern K-drama.
Source and verification notes: Netflix official series page; TVING official series listing; CJ ENM drama synopsis; tvN current schedule; Encyclopedia of Korean Culture: Government-General of Korea. Details verified November 2, 2026; release schedules and regional streaming rights may change. This is an independent editorial guide, not an official tvN or Netflix publication.