Costumes, Stage, and Format All Identical... Even Chinese Netizens Say "This Is Not Right" About Copycat 'Black and White Chef'

Netflix: "We Never Sold the Rights to China"
Even Camera Angles and Editing Styles Are Strikingly Similar

Allegations have been raised that the Chinese cooking competition show "Yi Fan Feng Shen" has plagiarized the Korean program "Black and White Chef" without authorization. On the 24th, Netflix Korea stated, "We have confirmed that the Chinese online video service (OTT) platform Tencent Video's variety show 'Yi Fan Feng Shen' uses a concept similar to 'Black and White Chef,' and we are currently discussing an internal response."

The Chinese cooking entertainment show "Yipanfengxuan," which has been accused of plagiarism of "Black and White Chef." Baidu

"Yi Fan Feng Shen," which premiered on the 17th, features a cooking competition among 16 industry-leading chefs and 84 rookie chefs. The format involves 100 chefs clashing with pots and knives, and the show includes settings such as participation by unknown chefs who run street stalls as well as star chefs who operate Michelin-starred restaurants. Immediately after its release, criticism arose that the overall program seemed to have directly copied "Black and White Chef."

In both programs, famous chefs wear white while rookie chefs wear black. Not only do the rookie chefs use nicknames, but the arrangement where famous chefs observe the rookie chefs' matches from an elevated position, as well as the set design, lighting, and even editing style, have all been pointed out as closely resembling the Korean variety show "Black and White Chef." In particular, the use of stage names instead of real names for rookie chefs, the division of chef uniforms into black and white, the depiction of famous chefs watching the rookies' competitions from above, and even the set design, camera angles, and editing methods used during the competitions are all similar.

The Chinese cooking entertainment show "Yipanfengxuan," which has been accused of plagiarism of "Black and White Chef." Baidu

Criticism has also continued within China. On social networking services (SNS) and online communities, comments such as "This is just too blatant," "The set and the format are exactly the same," "No matter what, this is really not right," and "I'm Chinese, but this is truly embarrassing" have poured in. Some have directly criticized their own broadcasting industry, saying, "The Chinese entertainment industry plagiarizes Korean variety shows while disparaging and criticizing them every day."

Previously, "Black and White Chef: Cooking Class War" was released as a Korean original variety show on Netflix in September 2023. It gained great popularity with its concept of highly skilled but lesser-known "black spoon" chefs challenging star "white spoon" chefs. Choi Hyunseok, Choi Kangrok, Yeo Kyungrae, Baek Jongwon, and Michelin 3-star chef Ahn Sungjae appeared on the show, which topped the Netflix non-English TV category worldwide for three consecutive weeks. Even in China, where Netflix is not officially available, "Black and White Chef" gained popularity through illegal distribution. During this process, unfounded criticisms such as "Korea stole Chinese cuisine" and "Baek Jongwon is a master thief" were raised. "Black and White Chef" has confirmed production of Season 2, aiming for release in the second half of 2025. Baek Jongwon and chef Ahn Sungjae, who participated in Season 1, will return as judges.