Netflix has been expanding far beyond its usual comfort zone lately, and the results have been hard to ignore. Instead of relying mostly on romance dramas and feel-good stories, the platform has been investing heavily in action, thriller, and high-concept projects. Recent hits like The WONDERfools and Bloodhounds Season 2 have helped push Korean content even further into the global spotlight, proving there is a huge audience for stories that take bigger risks.
Now, another action-packed series has climbed to the top of the charts, sharing the same gritty DNA as Bloodhounds and Weak Hero, except this time, the protagonist fights like John Wick in a high school hallway. After delivering an unforgettable performance in The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil, Kim Mu-yeol is back in his antihero element for Netflix's latest breakout hit, Teach You a Lesson.
Kim stars as Na Hwa-jin, a former Special Forces commander who now works as a government education inspector. Rather than dealing with troubled schools through traditional methods, Hwa-jin is sent into extreme situations where violence, bullying, and corruption have spiraled completely out of control. For viewers missing out on the John Wick action and choreography, this latest Netflix hit may be exactly what they are looking for.
Netflix’s Teach You a Lesson Brings John Wick Combat To The Classroom
Based on the popular webtoon Get Schooled (True Education), a title that sparked plenty of debate during its run due to its controversial themes and aggressive approach to school discipline, the live-action adaptation follows a similar path, presenting a fictional world where authorities respond to severe bullying and school violence through a special intervention program.
What sets Teach You a Lesson apart is its willingness to lean into that over-the-top concept. Hwa-jin is less of a traditional teacher and more of an action hero dropped into a school setting. The result is a series packed with hard-hitting fights, ruthless gangs, and a protagonist who solves problems in ways that would feel more at home in an action movie than a classroom.
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Squid Game shattered records on launch in 2021, becoming Netflix’s biggest-ever series debut. Hwang Dong-hyuk’s South Korean thriller centres on a desperate gambler named Seong Gi-hun. What is his player number?
✓ Correct! Gi-hun is Player 456 — the last number drawn. Kang Sae-byeok (the North Korean defector) is 067, Cho Sang-woo (the Stanford-educated finance crook) is 218, and the mysterious elderly Oh Il-nam is 001. Squid Game became Netflix’s first show to hit #1 in every country it launched in, amassing over 1.6 billion hours watched in its first month alone.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is 456. Gi-hun’s number is the very last of the 456 players. 067 is Sae-byeok the defector, 218 is Sang-woo the Stanford grad, and 001 is the mysterious old man Oh Il-nam whose identity becomes the series’ biggest reveal. Squid Game became Netflix’s most-watched launch ever, hitting #1 in 94 countries.
02
The Tim Burton-directed Addams Family spin-off set at Nevermore Academy became Netflix’s second-biggest English-language debut in 2022 and launched a TikTok dance craze. Which young actress plays the deadpan title character?
✓ Correct! Jenna Ortega — a Disney Channel graduate and indie-horror favourite (X, Scream VI) — took the role Christina Ricci made iconic in the 1990s films and made it entirely her own. Her now-famous cello-accompanied dance scene became an overnight TikTok phenomenon, and her performance earned Wednesday two Emmy nominations despite airing mid-season.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Jenna Ortega. Millie Bobby Brown is Eleven on Stranger Things, Sadie Sink plays Max Mayfield (also Stranger Things), and Maya Hawke plays Robin. Ortega’s deadpan Wednesday Addams — and her viral cello-dance scene — turned the show into a global phenomenon in late 2022.
03
In 2013, Netflix released a dark political thriller starring Kevin Spacey as a ruthless congressman breaking the fourth wall. It became the first major streaming original to land a Primetime Emmy nomination and effectively invented prestige streaming TV. Which show was it?
✓ Correct! House of Cards — adapted by Beau Willimon from the 1990 BBC series — became Netflix’s first prestige original and proved a streaming service could go toe-to-toe with HBO. Kevin Spacey’s Frank Underwood and his asides to camera defined early streaming TV. Orange Is the New Black followed months later in July 2013 and became Netflix’s longest-running original at the time.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is House of Cards (February 2013). Orange Is the New Black launched five months later (July 2013), Arrested Development’s Netflix revival came in May 2013, and Hemlock Grove was a horror effort the same spring. House of Cards was the flagship — the first streaming original to earn a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series.
04
Peter Morgan’s The Crown famously recast its entire ensemble every two seasons to age the royal family. After Claire Foy played Queen Elizabeth II in seasons 1-2, which Oscar-winning actress took the crown for seasons 3-4?
✓ Correct! Olivia Colman — fresh off her Best Actress Oscar for The Favourite — played the Queen across seasons 3 and 4, covering the late 1960s through the early Thatcher years. Imelda Staunton took over for seasons 5-6, Helena Bonham Carter played Princess Margaret in seasons 3-4, and Gillian Anderson stole the show as Margaret Thatcher in season 4.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Olivia Colman. Imelda Staunton took over for the final two seasons (5-6). Helena Bonham Carter played the chain-smoking Princess Margaret during seasons 3-4 alongside Colman. Gillian Anderson delivered an Emmy-winning Margaret Thatcher in season 4. Colman anchored the show’s middle era fresh off her 2019 Oscar win.
05
The Duffer Brothers’ 1980s nostalgia juggernaut sees Eleven and the gang battle inter-dimensional horrors from a portal beneath the town’s Hawkins National Laboratory. In which fictional US town and state is the series set?
✓ Correct! Hawkins, Indiana — a fictional Midwestern small town that became one of TV’s most iconic settings. The Duffer Brothers chose Indiana for its unassuming, ordinary-America vibe, making the supernatural chaos feel more jarring. Derry is Stephen King’s It setting, Hill Valley is from Back to the Future, and Twin Peaks is David Lynch’s famous town.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Hawkins, Indiana. Derry, Maine is the fictional town from Stephen King’s It. Hill Valley is Marty McFly’s home in Back to the Future. Twin Peaks, Washington is David Lynch’s famous fictional town. Hawkins is The Duffer Brothers’ deliberately ordinary Midwestern setting — the flat, unassuming backdrop that makes Vecna’s horrors hit harder.
06
Netflix’s Regency romance juggernaut — based on Julia Quinn’s novels and famous for its colour-blind casting, string-quartet pop covers, and narrated gossip column — is produced by which prolific showrunner’s production banner?
✓ Correct! Shonda Rhimes — the creator of Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal — produces Bridgerton through her Shondaland banner as the first major fruit of her massive 2017 Netflix deal. Chris Van Dusen created the show, but Shondaland’s signature ensemble-romance DNA is all over it. Julian Fellowes did Downton Abbey, Ryan Murphy did Monster/Dahmer, and Jenji Kohan did Orange Is the New Black.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Shonda Rhimes (Shondaland). Ryan Murphy produces true-crime anthologies like Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Julian Fellowes is the Downton Abbey/Gilded Age creator — a different period drama entirely. Jenji Kohan is behind Orange Is the New Black and Weeds. Bridgerton was the first big payoff of Rhimes’ nine-figure Netflix deal.
07
La Casa de Papel (Money Heist) became a global phenomenon on Netflix after a modest Spanish TV debut — partly thanks to its gang’s instantly recognisable red jumpsuits paired with a mask of which famous figure?
✓ Correct! The Salvador Dalí mask — with its upturned moustache — became the show’s defining visual alongside the red jumpsuits, a nod to Spanish artistic rebellion and surrealist individuality. It inspired protest iconography worldwide, from Lebanon to France. The original Antena 3 version underperformed; Netflix acquired it in 2017, re-edited it, and turned it into a global sensation.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Salvador Dalí. Guy Fawkes is the V for Vendetta mask that Anonymous adopted. Che Guevara is a common revolutionary image but not the heist crew’s mask. Picasso is a frequent wrong answer given he’s the more globally-known Spanish artist — but the Dalí mask, with its iconic moustache, is the one fused forever with Money Heist’s red jumpsuits.
08
Netflix’s 2020 limited series about a Cold War-era chess prodigy named Beth Harmon caused a global surge in chess-set sales and was one of the streamer’s most-watched shows that year. Who played Beth?
✓ Correct! Anya Taylor-Joy — already a cult favourite from The Witch and Emma — broke out globally as Beth Harmon, winning the Golden Globe for Best Actress. The Queen’s Gambit pulled 62 million households in its first 28 days and caused such a chess-boom that Chess.com and retailers ran out of sets. It also made Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel a surprise bestseller almost 40 years later.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Anya Taylor-Joy. Florence Pugh (Midsommar, Oppenheimer), Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird), and Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People, Where the Crawdads Sing) are all frequent competitors in similar roles. Taylor-Joy’s Beth Harmon earned her a Golden Globe, a SAG Award, and turned Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel into a sudden bestseller.
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What makes Na Hwa-jin feel so similar to John Wick is his background and the way he handles a fight. As a former Special Forces commander, he approaches every situation with the calm precision of someone who has dealt with far bigger threats than a group of school delinquents.
The comparison becomes even clearer once the action starts. Much like John Wick, Hwa-jin turns his surroundings into weapons. A classroom is never just a classroom. Markers, textbooks, desks, and anything else within reach quickly become tools he uses to effortlessly take down the bullies.
Teach You A Lesson Balances Hard-Hitting Action With A Dark Look At School Violence
Teach You a Lesson's Na Hwa-jin sitting with a bully victim.
Teach You a Lesson also benefits from a stunt team that clearly understands what makes action satisfying to watch. Every hit feels impactful, and the choreography keeps the fights moving at a fast pace. More importantly, the action serves the story. Most of Hwa-jin's opponents are bullies, gang members, or people abusing their power, which makes their eventual downfall all the more rewarding.
But beneath all the brutal fights and satisfying payback, Teach You a Lesson is really about a much bigger problem. The series takes a hard look at a school system where bullying has spiraled out of control, and the people meant to stop it often seem powerless. Teachers struggle to maintain authority, while influential parents frequently protect troublesome students from facing any meaningful consequences.
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As the story progresses, it shows how damaging that environment can become. Victims are left feeling isolated, ignored, and trapped in situations that grow worse with each passing day. Bullying is not treated as a minor inconvenience here. It is presented as something that can completely take over a student's life. For students who simply want to attend class, spend time with friends, and enjoy a normal school life, the classroom can become a place filled with anxiety and fear.
That combination of strong action and easy-to-follow storytelling makes Teach You a Lesson an incredibly easy show to binge. The episodes move quickly, the conflicts rarely drag, and each victory pushes the story forward. Before long, what starts as a plan to watch a single episode can easily turn into finishing the entire season in one sitting.
Teach You A Lesson
Release Date
June 5, 2026
Network
Netflix
Cast
Lee Sung-min
Choi Kang-seok
founded
January 16, 2007
founders
Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph
first original series
Lilyhammer
notable shows
Stranger Things, Squid Game, House of Cards, Wednesday
notable movies
KPop Demon Hunters, Bird Box, Red Notice
Netflix is a global streaming service offering on-demand access to movies, TV shows, documentaries, and original content. Founded in 1997 as a DVD rental service, it transitioned to streaming in 2007 and now operates in over 190 countries.
