Balancing both lighthearted charm and occasional drama, CBC’s Kim’s Convenience was a breath of fresh air when it premiered on Canadian television in 2016. Kim’s Convenience told the story of a Korean-Canadian family and their small business in Toronto. The comedy series, which was adapted from a play by future showrunner Ins Choi, featured, among others, The Mandalorian‘s Paul Sun-Hyung Lee and Shang-Chi‘s Simu Liu. It quickly became one of Canada’s most beloved sitcoms and gained international appeal after its 2018 debut on Netflix.
To the outside world, it appeared as if Kim’s Convenience had a bright future ahead. Unfortunately, development behind the scenes was not nearly as smooth. This would soon spell the downfall of the beloved series. Halfway through the show’s fifth season in 2021, CBC announced that the previously approved sixth season would not move forward. Almost immediately, fans started campaigns to save Kim’s Convenience, but to no avail.
Why ‘Kim’s Convenience’ Ended So Abruptly
The sudden change of heart was not due to the show’s ratings, but rather to the departure of its two creators, Ins Choi and Kevin White. Producer Ivan Fecan told The Globe and Mail that “from the start of Season 5, Ins wasn’t sure he wanted to go beyond that.” The cast was informed of the departure two months before the show’s cancellation.
Simu Liu, who played Jung on the show, also confirmed this in a (since-deleted) post, saying that the producers were “the ones who chose not to continue” the show. Despite both the cast and the fans wanting the closure that one final season would bring, Choi just wasn’t interested in coming back. And, without Choi, the producers didn’t see a future for the series.
A Disappointing Finale Hangs Over the History of ‘Kim’s Convenience‘
April 13, 2021, would be the final episode of Kim’s Convenience, with the episode carrying the somewhat tragically misleading name of “Friends and Family.” Dealing with the realization of the early cancellation, fans were, unfortunately, also given one of the worst endings to a series ever. Farewells are difficult enough, but the final episode felt rushed and disjointed, and major story arcs never received the closure fans hoped for. Jung and Appa’s long-awaited reconciliation, which was integral throughout much of the series, never happened. The romantic tension that was built between Jung and Shannon also remained unresolved.
A show with the perfect final season is rare, but to end so abruptly was especially disheartening, given that everyone knew the series was wrapping up and there was no attempt to pivot toward a meaningful send-off. The turmoil behind the scenes and the premature end of the show’s fifth and final season put the series in a compromising position, likely preventing it from achieving the desired departure that fans and the cast/crew wanted. Fans will always love the groundbreaking Canadian comedy. Still, the disappointing finale is just as pronounced in memory, leaving so many questions unanswered and up to viewers to fill in the gaps.
Why Ins Choi Left ‘Kim’s Convenience’
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, who plays the family patriarch, worked with Choi for more than 10 years, having appeared in the original play. Like the rest of the cast, Lee was blindsided by the show’s sudden cancellation. This prompted him to reach out to Choi, only to learn that Choi was no longer interested in speaking with him. As Lee told The Canadian Press,
“He ghosted me. He wouldn’t return my calls or my texts, and finally he responded via email saying he wasn’t comfortable talking about it. And that was it.”
From there, Lee added, it was nearly impossible to continue the series. “Unfortunately, the industry, the way it is, it’s very difficult to find somebody of that caliber to step in and replace someone like Ins Choi.” From what the Kim’s Convenience cast has said about Choi, it seems none of them were particularly close to the series creator. Liu has described Choi as epically reclusive. Whether Choi was just introverted or perhaps didn’t get along with his cast remains unknown.
Although the way Choi pulled the plug on Kim’s Convenience has not portrayed him in the most favorable light, without him, there would never have been a Kim’s Convenience to begin with. Choi based much of the concept on his own personal experiences. He even played Jung in the original play.
The Controversy Behind ‘Kim’s Convenience’
While the cast of Kim’s Convenience expressed their love and gratitude for the show, they revealed that working on it wasn’t always a pleasant experience. First, there was the issue of payment for services, which some of the cast were willing to work with. Liu, for one, wanted to continue his work on Kim’s Convenience despite the cast being paid “an absolute horsepoop rate.”
Then there was the writer’s room. Actress Jean Yoon revealed on Twitter that although the show was about a Korean family, there were neither Korean writers nor Korean cultural resources in the writer’s room. Choi, who is Korean-Canadian, may have written the original play and created the show, but, as Yoon put it, “Kevin White was the showrunner” and “clearly set the parameters.” As a result, some of the storylines presented were outrageously inaccurate from a cultural perspective.
Liu echoed many of Yoon’s comments while still iterating that he loved the show. Liu told The Hollywood Reporter that the way the show ended felt like a “betrayal” and that he felt other voices of color could have continued the series. In a now-unavailable Facebook post, Liu wrote about being frustrated by all the missed storytelling opportunities. Liu said the cast had even offered to step in to help.
“Many of us in the cast were trained screenwriters with thoughts and ideas that only grew more seasoned with time. But those doors were never opened to us in any meaningful way.”
What Happened After ‘Kim’s Convenience’?
Following the end of Kim’s Convenience, White helped develop a spin-off series, Strays. The series centered on Kim’s Convenience character Shannon Ross, who left Toronto, her job at Handy Car Rentals, and her relationship with Jung by the series’ end. Working as the executive director at an animal shelter in Hamilton, Ontario, Shannon transformed from a supporting character in Kim’s world into the lead of her own Canadian show.
Early on, fans of Kim’s Convenience criticized the spin-off for prioritizing one of the show’s only non-Asian characters. While Strays never reached the popularity of Kim’s Convenience, it did run for two seasons. However, CBC announced that the second season would be the final season of Strays, and the show was canceled after a brief run from 2021 to 2022.
The Play Behind ‘Kim’s Convenience’
For fans who still can’t get enough of the show and are yearning for something more, Kim’s Convenience is back, albeit not in the way that fans were expecting it to make a return. Ins Choi, together with the Grand Theatre, has brought the play behind the series back to life in London. The play is directed by Esther Jun, with Choi playing Appa.
Choi has noted the continued importance of the play in representing Asian narratives. He has also acknowledged that more needs to be done to create spaces for the stories of Asian artists to be heard. However, the writer has also expressed his excitement for fans who got to know the story of Kim’s Convenience through the TV show and are now experiencing it as a play. “I think the London audience is going to love it,” said Choi, as per the London Free Press, adding that he hoped audiences would know that it was the play that paved the way for the series.
The UK tour of the play began on October 17, 2023, and concluded its initial run on November 4 before later receiving additional performances. In early 2025, the play would return to its roots with a Toronto revival at Soulpepper, where it had first debuted in 2011. Afterward, the play would go on an international tour.
The Cast Has Moved On
Kim’s Convenience is now likely best known as the launching pad for many successful careers. The biggest is, without a doubt, Simu Liu. Liu plays the role of Shang-Chi in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is one of the most beloved entries in the franchise’s current slate of releases, and fans are waiting for his character to return in a future installment. Liu also recently appeared in Barbie as one of the many Kens.
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee has become a regular fixture on various Star Wars series on Disney+. He plays the role of Carson Teva, a New Republic officer in both The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka. He can also be seen in Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender in the role of Uncle Iroh. Kim’s Convenience, like Friends and How I Met Your Mother, has launched the careers of some big stars that might be one of its most significant lasting legacies. Kim’s Convenience is available to stream on Netflix.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
