XO, Kitty
XO, Kitty is an American romantic comedy drama television series created by Jenny Han for Netflix that premiered on May 18, 2023.[2] The series, a spin-off of the To All the Boys film series (itself an adaptation of Han's book trilogy To All the Boys I've Loved Before), marks the first Netflix television series to be spun-off from a Netflix original film.[3] Han serves as writer and executive producer in addition to being a showrunner. It features Kitty Song Covey going on her own journey to find true love. Anna Cathcart reprises the title role. The show has received positive reviews from critics.
| XO, Kitty | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | Romantic comedy |
| Created by | Jenny Han |
| Based on | Characters by Jenny Han |
| Starring |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original languages |
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| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 10 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Camera setup | Single camera[1] |
| Running time | 25–34 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Release | |
| Original network | Netflix |
| Original release | May 18, 2023 – present |
| Related | |
| To All the Boys I've Loved Before | |
In June 2023, the series was renewed for a second season.[4]
Cast and characters
Main
- Anna Cathcart as Katherine "Kitty" Song Covey[5]
- Choi Min-young as Dae-heon Kim[6]
- Anthony Keyvan as Quincy "Q" Shabazian[6]
- Gia Kim as Yuri Han[6]
- Sang Heon Lee as Min-ho[6]
- Peter Thurnwald as Professor Alex Finnerty[6]
- Regan Aliyah as Juliana[6]
Recurring
- Yunjin Kim as Director Ji-na Lim[6]
- Michael K. Lee as Professor Daniel Lee[6]
- Jocelyn Shelfo as Madison Miller[6]
- Lee Sung-wook as Mr. Kim[7]
- Théo Augier Bonaventure as Florian[7]
- Lee Hyung-chul as Mr. Han[7]
- Sunny Oh as Mi-hee[7]
- Ryu Han-bi as Eunice[7][8]
Guest
- John Corbett as Dan Covey[7]
- Sarayu Blue as Trina[7]
- Han Chae-young as Dami, Min Ho's mother[9]
- Ok Taec-yeon as Ocean Park[9]
- Chaerin from Cherry Bullet as Lulu[10]
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | May 18, 2023 | ||
Season 1 (2023)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "XO[lower-alpha 1]" | Jennifer Arnold | Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian | May 18, 2023 | |
| Kitty Song Covey is in a long-distance relationship with her boyfriend Dae, who lives in South Korea. She is offered a full scholarship at the Korean Independent School of Seoul (KISS), where Dae is a high school student and her mom studied as well. Wanting to see Dae and feel a connection to her mom, she convinces her dad to let her go. At the Seoul airport, she misses the bus to take her to the school and attempts to navigate on her own through public transit. Kitty is accidentally hit on the street by a car carrying Yuri, a popular student at KISS whose mom is the principal. Yuri offers her a ride to school, and Kitty later discovers the chauffeur is Dae's father. Yuri is in a secret relationship with a girl called Juliana and in order to hide it from her mom, she has Dae pose as her boyfriend in exchange for paying for his tuition for the semester. Kitty arrives at the school's welcome party and is thrilled to see Dae, but she leaves heartbroken when Yuri tells her Dae is her boyfriend. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "WTF[lower-alpha 2]" | Jennifer Arnold | Siobhan Vivian | May 18, 2023 | |
| Dae tries explaining the truth to Kitty, but she refuses to listen to him. However, due to the school mistaking her as a male student, she finds out her roommates are Dae and his two friends Q and Min Ho. She locks herself in her room wanting to leave the next morning, but she changes her mind after finding some places on campus where her mom posed in pictures. Yuri's dad, an important businessman, has a scandal after a video of him treating an employee badly goes viral, especially after Yuri posts a meme about it. Yuri's mom proposes a solution: she makes public Yuri and Dae's relationship as an opening for the company beginning to offer scholarships to low-income students during a press conference. Noticing how Dae refuses to hold Yuri's hand during the press conference, Kitty suspects the relationship is fake. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "KISS" | Jeff Chan | Alanna Bennett | May 18, 2023 | |
| At the first day of school at KISS, Kitty has been nicknamed the "Portland Stalker". Dae wants to tell Kitty the truth about his relationship with Yuri, but he is forced to sign an NDA and keep it a secret. Yuri tells him that she does not mind if Kitty knows the relationship is fake, as long as the reason for the relationship is not shared. A teacher tells Yuri's mom, the principal, that he suspects Dae wrote one of Yuri's assignments for her. Yuri's mom takes away Yuri's credit card, wrecking her plans for taking a trip with Juliana, who disappeared after she and Yuri were seen embracing by Juliana's housekeeper. Kitty discovers Q has a crush on a boy named Florian and helps them to become lab partners in chemistry class. Min Ho is rude to Kitty during class, and she publicizes his nickname "Poopy Baby" from a commercial he was in as a baby, leading to everyone making fun of him. Kitty is doing poorly in her classes, so she is assigned a tutor, who turns out to be Dae. Yuri tells Dae how Kitty publicized Min Ho's secret, causing him to be disappointed in Kitty and break up with her. She tells him to give her back her mom's necklace (which he was wearing), and he tells her that his relationship with Yuri is real. A baby hospital bracelet from 1993 falls from Kitty's mom's diary, making her realize that her mother had a baby when she was a teenager. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "TGIF[lower-alpha 3]" | Jeff Chan | Emily Kim | May 18, 2023 | |
| Kitty is moved to the girls' dorm after Min Ho reports the housing mistake. Her roommate is a girl who constantly plays video games and is extremely messy. Kitty tries approaching Dae as a friend, sharing everything she has discovered lately about her mother. She joins Q's outdoor activity club to have privacy with Dae, but Min Ho tells Yuri, and she joins as well. When taking a picture for Yuri, Kitty finds the hospital that was on the baby bracelet. She manages to get inside to the record room at the hospital and discovers she has a half-brother who was adopted by an Australian couple. She is caught by security, but Professor Finnerty comes to her rescue. They talk about his experience being adopted, and she suspects he might be her half-brother. Min Ho finds a video that Kitty's roommate posted online of Kitty sleeping, and the boys encourage her to move out. Q suggests she move back in with them, causing tension between Dae and Kitty. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "TBH[lower-alpha 4]" | Jennifer Arnold | Sarah Choi | May 18, 2023 | |
| Chuseok, Korean Thanksgiving, is happening, during which people go home to spend time with family. Kitty plans a dinner with Professor Finnerty and other expats to tell him they are related. Yuri questions her mom about her and Kitty's mom, Eve Song, being friends at KISS, but Jina denies being close to Eve. Yuri's parents fight due to her father traveling so much for work, so she goes to Dae's home to celebrate the holiday there. A messenger gives her a package that Kitty sent to Dae, which contained the necklace she originally gave him, but Yuri doesn't deliver it to Dae. For the Chuseok dinner, Kitty prepares mashed potatoes, not knowing that lactose intolerance is common in Asians. She causes Min Ho to miss his date with a pop star called Lulu, but she arranges for their date to be rescheduled for the next night. Finnerty shares with Kitty that Professor Lee is his father, but that Lee doesn't know. Yuri arrives home where she sees her mother prepared food for Chuseok. After Yuri goes to bed, Jina rips a page out from a KISS 1993 yearbook that she and Eve are pictured on together and burns it. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "BYOB[lower-alpha 5]" | Jennifer Arnold | Hanna Stanbridge & Chris Martin | May 18, 2023 | |
| Min Ho has a sex dream about Kitty, suggesting he has developed feelings for her. Kitty is upset with Dae for not thanking her for giving him back the necklace, not knowing that Yuri kept it. Kitty wants to talk to Lee and get to know him better and introduce Finnerty to Margot and Lara Jean, but Finnerty tells her that not everyone is on "Kitty Schedule" and it is better for her to focus on her studies. Q invites Kitty to Min Ho's party, where she is determined to find someone new to kiss. Yuri lies to her mother, saying she is going on a date with Dae, but is actually DJing at Min Ho's party. Kitty meets a boy named Geon, but she loses interest in him when he starts badmouthing Yuri. Kitty drunkenly sends a text to Finnerty, but she accidentally sends it to Lee, who informs Jina about the party. Jina tracks Yuri on her phone and realizes that Yuri lied to her. Lee and Jina arrive to end the party. Dae confronts Yuri about why she hid the necklace from him, but before she can say anything, Lee stops the music, shutting down the party. Min Ho sees Dae and Kitty speaking, not knowing Kitty had ended things with him, and Min Ho kisses Madison. Kitty has a sex dream about Yuri, showing she has developed feelings for her. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "TIL[lower-alpha 6]" | Pamela Romanowsky | Jessica O'Toole | May 18, 2023 | |
| The students caught at the party are punished with detention at school on Saturday, and Lee tells everyone it was Kitty who informed him about the party. Yuri tells Dae that she was afraid he would stop being her friend and would leave her to be with Kitty, which is why she didn't give him the necklace. She plans to give the necklace back to Kitty, but after finding out that Kitty has been living with Dae, Yuri instead wears it to detention, causing friction with Kitty. Jina sees the necklace and believes it is hers, making it clear to Kitty and Yuri that she has lied about her relationship with Eve. Yuri searches for the KISS 1993 yearbook in her mom's office and discovers that Jina had sent Juliana away. Yuri and Kitty look for the yearbook at Lee's house, and Kitty sees a picture of Jina and Eve wearing matching necklaces, in which Jina is overweight, suggesting she is Alex's biological mom. Yuri calls the paparazzi and publicly breaks up with Dae, texting her mom that she will never forgive her for what she did to Juliana. Dae looks for Kitty, hoping to be with her. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "LFG[lower-alpha 7]" | Pamela Romanowsky | Jessica O'Toole & Sascha Rothchild | May 18, 2023 | |
| Since they have gotten back together, Kitty and Dae only kiss, frustrating her, since she wants to talk about his relationship with Yuri and he doesn not, making her question whether she can trust him. The students travel to a village affected by floods and help restore the surroundings. Q and Florian's relationship is struggling, as Florian's divorced parents want him to move to Greece and France, respectively. Yuri finally tells Kitty the truth: that she is gay and Dae helped her hide her relationship. With Margot's help, Kitty finds Juliana and arranges a FaceTime with Yuri. Dae prepares a surprise for Kitty, telling her he loves her, and she says she loves him as well. Min Ho realizes he wants a relationship, but Madison doesn't want the same, so they part ways. Kitty tells Yuri everything went well with Dae, but as soon as she sees Yuri talking with Juliana, she realizes she is not happy. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "SNAFU[lower-alpha 8]" | Katina Medina Mora | Sascha Rothchild | May 18, 2023 | |
| Jina is jogging, and Alex finds her and tells her he is her son. She admits that when she gave birth, she used Eve's name at the hospital. Jina tells her husband, and he tells her to pay off Alex so that he will not reveal the truth. Yuri overhears the conversation and learns she has a half-brother. She comes out to her mom and leaves the house, moving in with Kitty and the boys. Kitty needs to pass all her classes, or she won't be allowed to stay at KISS. Everyone helps her study and agrees to participate on a talent show in which Lee offers extra credit for their lowest classes. Alex plans to leave KISS and never return, but Kitty tells him to stay since Yuri knows she has a half-brother and wants to meet him. Kitty has not told Yuri that Alex is her half-brother, since Alex asked her not to say anything to her. Min Ho and Dae suspect Florian is cheating on Q, but it turns out he cheated on the final exams. Yuri offers to teach Kitty a dance with fans to perform in the talent show, while Kitty becomes nervous around Yuri during the rehearsal. Before the performance, Jina approaches Yuri, telling her Alex is her half-brother, which shocks Yuri. Jina says she thought Kitty had already told her, causing Yuri and Kitty to argue during the performance. Kitty's dress catches on fire during the performance due to some fireworks that were going to be used in a different act. Min Ho jumps to the stage and helps her, while Dae sees at the way Min Ho looks at her and realizes Min Ho has feelings for Kitty. Jina introduces Yuri and Alex as siblings and walks together with them. Kitty confesses to Dae that she has feelings for another person, and believing she refers to Min Ho, he walks away angrily to confront him. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "OTP[lower-alpha 9]" | Katina Medina Mora | Jessica O'Toole & Sascha Rothchild | May 18, 2023 | |
| Kitty tells Dae the other person she has feelings for is Yuri, hurting him and causing him to leave. Jina tells Lee that Alex is his son and that she did not tell him so he would not give up his dream for him. The final exam results are posted, and Kitty has passed all her classes, but she is expelled when she is found out to have been living in the boys' dorm. Kitty gives Jina music that she downloaded believing it was for her mom, and Jina gives her a letter that Eve wrote to her but she never responded to. Florian is ranked first in the exam results due to his cheating, jeopardizing Dae's scholarship, which requires him to be ranked first, putting Q in a hard position. Kitty breaks up with Dae, telling him he was the first boy she ever loved, and he tells he loved her too. Yuri is at the airport waiting for Juliana, and Kitty is about to tell her how she feels, when Juliana appears, so Kitty leaves quietly. Yuri calls her mother and tells her it is a mistake to expel Kitty. Kitty reads her mom's letter on the plane and finds out her mother's first love was someone called Simon. Min Ho is seated next to her, traveling to see his mom in Los Angeles, and he confesses his feelings to Kitty, leaving her dumbfounded. | ||||||
Production
In March 2021, it was announced that a series spin-off to To All the Boys was in development, with each episode being a half-hour romantic comedy. The series got developed as a Netflix exclusive, from Awesomeness and ACE Entertainment.[11] The books' original author Jenny Han was reported to be the creator, writer and executive producer as well as writing the script for the pilot with Siobhan Vivian.[12] Anna Cathcart was also reported to be reprising her role as Kitty Song Covey.[13] Six months later, Netflix ordered ten episodes along with announcing other crew members.[14] Sascha Rothchild and Matt Kaplan joined Han as executive producers while the former is also the showrunner along with Han.[15] On April 5, 2022, Choi Min-yeong, Anthony Keyvan, Gia Kim, Sang Heon Lee, Peter Thurnwald, and Regan Aliyah were cast as series regulars while Yunjin Kim, Michael K. Lee, and Jocelyn Shelfo joined the cast in recurring roles.[16] By that date, production had begun in Seoul.[6][17] Gia Kim and Sang Heon Lee, the actors who played Yuri and Min Ho, respectively, are siblings in real life.[18] On June 14, 2023, Netflix renewed the series for a second season.[19]
Release
XO, Kitty was released on Netflix on May 18, 2023.[2]
Reception
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 83% approval rating with an average rating of 5.8/10, based on 18 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "A modest and sweet extension of all the films that fans have loved before, XO, Kitty aims straight for the heart and finds its mark."[20] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 67 out of 100 based on seven critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[21]
While the series had a high viewership on Netflix in more than 50 countries, it received minimal attention in South Korea, where the show takes place. A reason cited for this was that the global success of South Korean media led to the country's people not caring about its depiction in foreign productions. Another explanation was that thrillers and action shows are more popular than romance shows in South Korea.[22]
Notes
- A North American acronym meaning "hugs and kisses"
- An acronym for "What the Fuck"
- An acronym for "Thank God It's Friday"
- An acronym for "To Be Honest"
- An acronym for "Bring Your Own Bottle"
- Acronym for "Today I Learned"
- Acronym for "Let's Fucking Go"
- Acronym for "Situation Normal: All Fucked Up"
- Acronym for "One True Pair"
References
- "To All the Boys spin-off series (Netflix)". The Futon Critic. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
- Swift, Andy (March 22, 2023). "XO, Kitty First Look: To All the Boys Spinoff Sets May Premiere on Netflix". TVLine. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
- Zorrilla, Mónica Marie (October 18, 2021). "'To All the Boys' to Get TV Spinoff Starring Anna Cathcart". Variety. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
- "'XO, Kitty' Season 2 Renewal: Everything to Know About the Spin-Off's Return". Netflix Tudum. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- Zhan, Jennifer (October 18, 2021). "We're Getting a To All the Boys Spin-off Show About Kitty Song Covey". Vulture. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
- Swift, Andy (April 5, 2022). "Netflix's To All the Boys Spinoff Series XO, Kitty Reveals Full Cast — First Look". TVLine. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
- George, Crystal (16 May 2023). "XO, Kitty cast guide: Who stars in the To All the Boys spin-off series?". Netflix Life. Netflix. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
- Lee, Chang-gyu (April 20, 2023). "내사모남' 스핀오프, 5월 18일 공개 확정…서울 전경 담은 포스터 눈길" ['My Wife' spin-off confirmed to be released on May 18... A poster with a panoramic view of Seoul] (in Korean). X-ports News. Retrieved April 20, 2023 – via Naver.
- George, Crystal (18 May 2023). "Is 2PM's Taecyeon in XO, Kitty?". Netflix Life. Netflix. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
- "체리블렛 채린, 美 '내사모남' 스핀오프 '엑스오, 키티' 출연". entertain.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2023-05-19.
- Andreeva, Nellie (March 31, 2021). "'To All The Boys' Spinoff Series Starring Anna Cathcart Eyed By Netflix From Jenny Han, Awesomeness & ACE Entertainment". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
- Shafer, Ellise (March 31, 2021). "'To All the Boys' Spinoff Series Starring Anna Cathcart in Early Development at Netflix". Variety. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
- Slenk, Austin (April 1, 2021). "This Beloved 'To All the Boys' Character Is Getting Their Own Netflix Spinoff TV Series". Collider. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
- Gilcrease, Grayson (October 19, 2021). "Move Over, Lara Jean! To All the Boys Is Finally Getting Its Own Spinoff With Kitty Song Covey". Yahoo!. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
- Andreeva, Nellie (October 18, 2021). "'To All The Boys' Spinoff YA Series 'XO, Kitty' Starring Anna Cathcart Ordered By Netflix". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
- Del Rosario, Alexandra (April 5, 2022). "'XO, Kitty': Choi Min-yeong, Anthony Keyvan & Gia Kim Among 9 Cast In Netflix's 'To All The Boys' Spinoff Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
- Paz, Maggie Dela (April 6, 2022). "XO, Kitty Spin-Off Production Begins in Seoul as Netflix Reveals Cast". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
- "XO, Kitty's Min Ho and Yuri Are Real-Life Siblings". Teen Vogue. May 18, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- Campione, Katie (June 14, 2023). "'XO, Kitty' Renewed For Season 2 At Netflix". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
- "XO, Kitty: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
- "XO, Kitty: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- Si-jin, Lee (May 30, 2023). "[Reporter's Notebook] Why is 'XO, Kitty' struggling to win Korean viewers over?". The Korea Herald.
External links
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