New Korean Dating Show Goes Viral For Having Only Terminally Ill Contestants 

A new Korean dating show is drawing attention online for its unusual and emotional premise.

SBS’s upcoming reality show Love Against Time follows young adults in their 20s and 30s who have either received terminal diagnoses or experienced life-threatening illnesses as they search for love.

According to the production team, the show was created around the question: “If I had little time left, whom would I love?” The program will follow contestants as they focus on the present and form connections while carrying the experiences that shaped their lives.

The MC lineup includes Lee Se Young, CNBLUE’s Jung Yong Hwa, SEVENTEEN’s DK, and Choi Yena.

Unlike traditional dating shows, Love Against Time will feature a unique matching system in which contestants exchange “time” with each other every night. The production team also teased that unexpected connections between participants developed during filming.

The show has already gained attention due to its emotional premise, with many viewers expressing surprise over a dating program centered around people who have faced the possibility of losing their lives at a young age.

korea has been wilding with their dating show concepts lately like, okay??

— dran (@daheeverse) July 13, 2026

Is that why Yena is the panelist…

— Hearts 𖧷 (@May2Hearts) July 13, 2026

am i too woke or…

— * (@chaechwe) July 13, 2026

Director Lee Eun Sol, who previously worked on SBS’s Possessed Love, explained that the goal was to show how people who understand life’s limits can still love passionately and sincerely.

Love Against Time will premiere on August 3 at 10 PM KST.