Thai television soap opera

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Lakorn (ละคร pronounced [la.kʰɔːn] related to Javanese ꦭꦏꦺꦴꦤ꧀ lakon from ꦭꦏꦸ laku "behavior"^[1][2]) or lakhon is a popular genre of fiction in Thai television known in Thai as ละครโทรทัศน์ RTGS: lakhon thorathat (lit. "television drama"). They are shown generally at prime-time on Thai television channels, starting usually on, before or approximately at 20:25-20:30 hrs local time. An episode of a prime-time drama is between 45 minutes to two hours long including commercials. Each series is a finished story, unlike Western "cliffhanger" dramas, but rather like Hispanic telenovelas.^[3]

The first television drama in Thailand was Suriyani Mai Yom Taengngan (สุริยานีไม่ยอมแต่งงาน, lit. "Suriyani sent a mitten") starring Mom Rajawongse Thanadsri Svasti and Chotirot Samosorn with Nuanla-or Thongnuedee from the composition of Nai Ramkarn (Prayad Sor Nakanat) broadcast on January 5, 1956, on Channel 4 Bangkhunphrom (now Channel 9), the first Thai television station. It can be considered the broadcast happened only two months after the establishment of the station.^[4]

A series will run for about three months. It may air two or three episodes a week, the pattern being Monday–Tuesday, Wednesday–Thursday Monday-Thursday (weekday slots) or Friday–Sunday (weekend slot). A channel will air three soap operas simultaneously at any given time (each producing their own series by separate production houses). Channels will compete for the most popular stars as they attract the most viewers. Some examples are Channel 3, 5, and 7 as well to a lesser extent on Channel 9.^[5]

While the "best" series are shown at night right after the news, the ones with a smaller profiles (and shorter run times) will be shown in the evenings from 17:00–18:00. In some cases, the most popular prime-time series are shown on re-runs a couple of years after their initial release, generally in the afternoon.^[6]

A lakorn episode is normally 1 hour or 30 minutes. When broadcasting internationally, the running time is around 45 min. per episode.

Since January 20, 2023, every Friday night after the second edition of the evening news, Channel 7 stopped airing its regular television dramas. Instead, the station began broadcasting live combat sport matches from ONE Championship, marking a significant shift in the Thai television industry.^[7]

Starting from September 6 of the same year, Channel 7 introduced a new prime-time slot for television dramas from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., reducing the drama broadcast to just one hour. Only one drama would air Monday through Thursday, while another drama would be shown over the weekend. After 9:30 p.m., the station began airing Korean dramas, starting with Ghost Doctor (2022).^[8]

By mid-2024, Thai television dramas faced a crisis due to a sharp decline in viewership. Most audiences had shifted toward watching dramas in the format of "series", including foreign titles from China and Korea, as well as streaming platforms like Netflix. This change led to a significant drop in advertising revenue on free TV channels. Many actors found themselves out of work.

One notable example is The Legend of Nang Nak, a 2024 adaptation of the Mae Nak Phra Khanong story on Channel 3, directed by Taweewat Wantha (known for horror films Death Whisperer and Death Whisperer 2). Although originally scheduled to premiere on July 16, the show was postponed indefinitely. In its place, the station began re-running old dramas. Many channels slowed down drama production, and the veteran actor–producer duo Chatchai and Sinjai Plengpanich shut down their production company.^{[9][10][11][12][13]}

Eventually, The Legend of Nang Nak premiered its first episode on October 14 of the same year.