“Culinary Class Wars” is South Korea’s biggest unscripted export of the past two years, and as it heads into a third season, Netflix is being conspicuously quiet about a question fans would assume already had an answer: will chefs Anh Sung-jae and Paik Jong-won, the two judges most associated with the show, actually be back. Filming was reportedly set to begin in May, roughly four months after Season 2 wrapped on January 13, according to The Korea Herald (Lee Yoon-seo, April 29, 2026). Asked directly whether Anh and Paik would reprise their roles, a Netflix official’s answer was a version of “we can’t say”: “As this is a survival program, we ask for your understanding that details related to the project are difficult to confirm at this time.”
That caution isn’t coming from nowhere. Both judges have spent the months since Season 2 wrapped dealing with controversies that have nothing to do with the show itself. Anh, whose restaurant Mosu Seoul holds Michelin recognition, faced backlash after a customer alleged that a 2005 vintage wine was served in place of a promised 2000 vintage, with the sommelier allegedly swapping the bottle without the customer’s consent, per The Korea Herald. Mosu Seoul responded with a public statement saying it takes the matter “very seriously” and would “rebuild trust with customers through a sincere approach.” Paik, separately, announced he was stepping back from broadcasting last year amid a cluster of controversies — alleged Food Sanitation Act violations, franchise-operation disputes, and on-set power-abuse accusations — though he still appeared, unedited, in Season 2, because filming had wrapped before those controversies broke.
The production isn’t standing still while the judge question hangs unresolved. Season 3 is shifting its entire format: instead of individual chefs competing solo, teams of four chefs from the same restaurant will compete against rival restaurant teams, a structural change from the first two seasons’ focus on individual black-team-versus-white-team battles, according to The Korea Herald’s reporting on Netflix’s announcement. That’s a real format risk independent of the casting question — a show built around individual underdog narratives is rebuilding itself around team dynamics at the same time it may be parting ways with the two personalities most viewers associate with it.
Whether that’s a reasonable hedge against ongoing controversies or an unforced error depends on what you think made the first two seasons work. If it was the format and the unknown black-team chefs, the judge uncertainty barely matters. If it was Anh’s exacting precision and Paik’s populist warmth playing off each other, replacing both at once while also overhauling the competition structure is a lot of change to ask one season to absorb.
Sources: Lee Yoon-seo, “‘Culinary Class Wars’ eyes May shoot amid judge controversies,” The Korea Herald, April 29, 2026.
