Taxi Driver (South Korean TV series)

Taxi Driver (Korean: 모범택시) is a South Korean television series starring Lee Je-hoon, Pyo Ye-jin, Kim Eui-sung, Jang Hyuk-jin, Bae Yoo-ram, Esom and Shin Jae-ha. Based on the webtoon The Deluxe Taxi (Red Cage) by Carlos and Lee Jae-jin, the story is inspired by actual real life heinous crimes committed in Korea.^[2] The first season aired on SBS TV from April 9 to May 29, 2021, every Friday and Saturday at 22:00 (KST).^[3][4] The second season aired from February 17 to April 15, 2023.^[5][6] The third season is scheduled to air in the second half of 2025.^[7] It is also available for streaming on Wavve in South Korea, on Kocowa in the Americas, and on Netflix,^[b] Viki and Viu in selected regions.^[8]

Taxi Driver
Promotional poster for season 2
Also known as	Taxi Driver 2
Hangul	모범택시
Hanja	模範택시
Literal meaning	Model Taxi
Revised Romanization	Mobeomtaeksi
McCune–Reischauer	Mobŏmt'aeksi
Genre	Action Crime Vigilante Black Comedy Revenge[1]
Based on	The Deluxe Taxi (Red Cage) by Carlos and Lee Jae-jin
Developed by	Studio S
Written by	Oh Sang-ho[a] Lee Ji-hyun (season 1)[a]
Directed by	Park Joon-woo (season 1) Lee-dan (season 2) Kang Bo-seung (season 3)
Starring	Lee Je-hoon Pyo Ye-jin Kim Eui-sung Esom Jang Hyuk-jin Bae Yoo-ram Shin Jae-ha
Music by	Kim Seung-yul Park Se-joon (season 2)
Opening theme	"Taxi Driver" by Kim Sung-youl
Ending theme	Various
Country of origin	South Korea
Original language	Korean
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	32 + 2 special
Production
Executive producer	Cho Sung-hoon (C.P)
Producers	Hong Seung-chang Kim Young-bae Lee Ok-gyu (season 1) Han Jeong-hwan (season 2)
Editors	Kim Yu-mi Park Eun-mi
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	70 minutes
Production companies	Studio S Group 8
Original release
Network	SBS TV
Release	April 9, 2021 (2021-04-09) – present

Taxi Driver received praise from the viewers for its performances and storylines.^[9][10] The first-season finale episode achieved the fourth highest rating of any Friday-Saturday drama in SBS history.^[11] The second-season finale episode earned a higher rating than the previous season. It also set a new record for the highest ratings achieved by any miniseries thus far in 2023.^[12]

Series overview

Season	Episodes		Originally released		Time slot	Avg. viewership (millions)
			First released	Last released
1	16		April 9, 2021 (2021-04-09)	May 29, 2021 (2021-05-29)	Friday and Saturday at 22:00 (KST)	2.765
2	18	Special 1	February 16, 2023 (2023-02-16)		Thursday at 22:00 (KST)	0.721
		16	February 17, 2023 (2023-02-17)	April 15, 2023 (2023-04-15)	Friday and Saturday at 22:00 (KST)	2.869
		Special 2	March 4, 2023 (2023-03-04)		Friday at 22:00 (KST)	1.030

Premise

Kim Do-gi is a KMA graduate who works as a taxi driver for a company which offers a "revenge-call" service to its clients who have been wronged and helps them to exact vengeance.

Cast and characters

Main

• Lee Je-hoon as Kim Do-gi^[13][14]

A former 707th Special Mission Group captain who works for Rainbow Taxi Company after his mother was killed.

• Esom as Kang Ha-na (season 1)^[13]

An elite prosecutor from the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office. She fights for justice and later becomes interested in Do-gi's work.

• Kim Eui-sung as Jang Sung-chul^[13][15]

The CEO of Rainbow Taxi Company and the Director of Blue Bird, a non-profit foundation. He is ruthless to the villains, but is warm-hearted for the crime victims.

• Pyo Ye-jin as Ahn Go-eun^[16]

A skilled hacker working for Rainbow Taxi Company after her older sister committed suicide.

• Jang Hyuk-jin as Choi gyeong-ku^[13][17]

The lead mechanic of Rainbow Taxi Company. He was a development researcher for new automobiles in an automobile company.

• Bae Yoo-ram as Park Jin-eon^[13]

The assistant mechanic of Rainbow Taxi Company. He was an aircraft maintenance mechanic in an airline company.

• Shin Jae-ha as On Ha-jun / Kim Dan-woo (season 2)^[18]

A new driver of Rainbow Taxi Company, who is a member of the Geumsa Organization.

Supporting

• Cha Ji-yeon as Baek Sung-mi

The chairman of Nakwon C&C. Nicknamed "The Godmother", she is a notorious, influential figure in the underground economy.

• Yoo Seung-mok as Cho Jin-woo

The deputy chief prosecutor of the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office.

• Lee Yoo-joon as Wang Min-ho

A prosecutor from the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office working in Ha-na's office. He assists Ha-na in her cases.

• Yu Yeon-su as So-eun

A prosecutor from the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office working in Ha-na's office.

• Lee Ho-cheol as Goo Seok-tae

Sung-mi's secretary.

• Cho Hyun-woo as Cho Do-chul

A sexual offender who was released from prison.

• Heo Jung-do as Park Dong-pil

A captain from Seoul Jongam Police Station.

• Park Jong-hwan as Park Hyeon-jo (season 2)^[19]

A high-ranking corrupt police officer and an executive of Geumsa Organization who keeps an eye on Rainbow Taxi Company.

Recurring

Season 1

Changsung Jeotgal Factory (eps. 1–2)

• Jo In as Kang Maria

Rainbow Taxi Company's first requester. She is mentally handicapped and was unknowingly brought to work in the factory.

• Tae Hang-ho as Park Ju-chan

The general manager of the factory, who resorts to labour exploitation, illegal confinement and habitual abusing of the workers.

• Song Duk-ho as Cho Jong-geun

Ju-chan's younger brother-in-law.

• Kim Do-yeon as Choi Jong-suk

A handler who was responsible for bringing Maria to work at the factory.

• Jo Dae-hee as Kim Hyung-wook

A corrupt chief of the countryside police station, who is under Ju-chan's payroll.

Sejung High School (eps. 3–4)

• Park Joon-mok as Park Jung-min

Rainbow Taxi Company's second requester. He is a sophomore student who is frequently bullied by Park Seung-tae and his friends.

• Choi Hyun-wook as Park Seung-tae

Jung-min's schoolmate and bully.

• Lee Min-jae as Oh Hak-soo

Seung-tae's friend who helps him in bullying Jung-min.

• Lee Jae-hak as Jang Hyung-sik

Seung-tae's friend who helps him in bullying Jung-min.

U Data (eps. 5–8)

• Jeon Sung-il as Seo Young-min

A former U Data employee who was abused by Park Yang-jin. Do-gi personally accepts to seek revenge for him, which is different from the previous two cases.

• Baek Hyun-jin as Park Yang-jin

The chairman of U Data. He is frequently abusive to his employees whenever something bad happens, and even has resorted to gaslighting them.

• Cho Ha-seok as Director Jung
• Kim Jae-young as Mr. Lee

The head of department in U Data.

• Lee Da-il as Mr. Ahn

A department manager in U Data.

• Kwak Min-gyu as Jeon Jin-won

A former employee of U Data.

• Ryu Yi-jae as Ahn Jung-eun

Go-eun's older sister who has passed away.

• Seo Han-gyeol as Choi Min

Jung-eun's boyfriend.

Voice Phishing Organisation (eps. 9–10)

• Shim So-young as Lim Bok-ja

The boss of a voice phishing organisation, located within a Chinese food restaurant.

• Kim Dae-gon as Madame Lim's employee

Nakwon C&C / Embassy of Bahamas (eps. 11–14)

• Lee Ho-cheol as Goo Young-tae^[c]

Seok-tae's twin brother and the junior managing director of Nakwon C&C.

• Jung Kang-hee as Shim Woo-seob
• Han Kyu-won as Go Dong-hee
• Han Hyun-ah as Lee Hye-yeon

Dong-hee's girlfriend.

• Lee Yoon-hee as Pastor Go

Dong-hee's father.

• Lee Ha-eun as Dong-hee's younger sister

Oh Chul-young (eps. 15–16)

• Yang Dong-tak as Oh Chul-young

A serial killer who murdered Sung-chul's parents and Do-gi's mother.

• Jeon Seok-chan as Kim Chul-jin

A man who was wrongfully jailed 20 years behind bars for a murder case actually committed by Chul-young.

• Ryu Sung-rok as Han Dong-chan / Oh Hyun-soo

Chul-young's son and a prison guard.

Season 2

Vietnam Kidnap Group (eps. 1–2)

• Choi One as Lee Joon-beom^[20]

Rainbow Taxi Company's first requester (in season 2). He was searching for his missing son, Lee Dong-jae, for the past year.

• Zo Zee-an as Lee Dong-jae

A missing young man suspected to be a victim of crime.

• Yoon Seok-hyun as Sang-man

The manager of Cheongeum International.

• Kim Jeong-hoon as a tour guide
• Lee Kyu-ho as Kwon Du-sik

The boss of Cheongeum International's illegal gambling sites department.

• Park Seong-geun as Kim Hyung-sub^[21]

The head of the Seoul Northeast Police Station's violent team and the chairman of Cheongeum International.

Yongsori Village (eps. 3–4)

• Byun Joong-hee as Lee Im-soon

Rainbow Taxi Company's second requester (in season 2). She was the victim of a previous scam operation by Yoo Sang-gi.

• Ko Sang-ho as Yoo Sang-gi^[22]

A professional scammer who targets the elderly people. He purchased spoilt devices, and resold them as usable devices in order to scam victims.

• Kang Young-taek as Lee Dong-geun^[23]

A gang member who works under Sang-gi.

• Yoo Dong-hoon as Goo Jae-seung

A gang member who works under Sang-gi.

• Lee Kwang-hoon as Yong-chil

A phone seller who worked together with Sang-gi.

• Shin Kang-gyun as Lee Deok-goo

An elderly man staying in Yongsori Village, who almost became a victim of Sang-gi's scam operation.

Feel Consulting (eps. 5–6)

• Ahn Chae-heum as Hwang Seo-yeon

Rainbow Taxi Company's third requester (in season 2). She was a victim of child abuse.

• Kim Do-yoon as Kang Pil-seung^[24]

Nicknamed "Kang Pro", he is a representative of Feel Consulting who has mysophobia.

• Kwon Na-hyun as Park So-mang

Seo-yeon's adoptive younger sister.

• Jeong Young-gi as Park Joon-bin

The lead manager of Feel Consulting.

Soonbaek Cult (eps. 7–8)

• Kim Eun-bi as Lee Jin-hee^[25]

Rainbow Taxi Company's fourth requester (in season 2). She was searching for her older sister, Lee Jin-seon, who joined a cult.

• Ahn Sung-woo as Ok Joo-man^[25]

A pastor and leader of the cult pseudo-churches that are committing crimes.

• Jung Ji-woo as Lee Jin-seon^[26]

Jin-hee's sister who is a victim of a pseudo-church.

• Seo Ji-soo as Joo-man's lover^[27]

Jeil Chakhan Hospital (eps. 9–10)

• Jung Ki-seob as Han Jae-deok

Rainbow Taxi Company's fifth requester (in season 2). He is on a one-man protest against Jeil Chakhan Hospital, which put her daughter in a coma due to a medical malpractice.

• Lee Hang-na as Ahn Young-sook^[28]

The chief director of Jeil Chakhan Hospital.

• Kang Seol as Han Soo-ryeon^[28]

Jae-deok's daughter and an athlete, who is under comatose status due to a medical malpractice.

• Kim Jae-min as Gong Soo-ho^[29]

A manager of Meditopia's medical sales team. He acts as a proxy for Young-sook.

• Kim Young-jin as Manager Kim^[29]

Young-sook's close friend.

Black Sun (eps. 11–14)

• Baek Soo-jang as Kim Yong-min^[30]

Rainbow Taxi Company's sixth requester (in season 2). He formerly works as a reporter under Hanbaek Ilbo.

• Jang In-sub as Choi Seong-eun^[31]

A police officer who died while investigating the Black Sun with Yong-min.

• Kim Chae-eun as Windy^[32]

An agent of the Black Sun.

• Jeon Woon-jong as Cho Gyeong-jang^[33]

A corrupt police officer who works with the Black Sun.

• Go Geon-han as Victor^[34]

An idol and VIP member of the Black Sun.

• Lee Dal as Min Jong-seon^[34]

The head of the Black Sun guards.

• Moon Jae-won as Yoo Moon-hyeon^[35]

The manager of the Black Sun.

• Jeon Jun-ho as No. 12^[36]

Black Sun guard.

• Yoo Ji-yeon as Yang Mi-kyung^[37]

A VIP member of the Black Sun.

Geumsa Organization (eps. 15–16)

• Park Ho-san as Park Min-geon^[38]

The head of Geumsa Organization. Also known as the Bishop, he has been planning his revenge against the Rainbow Taxi Company for years, particularly harbouring a disturbing decades-long obsession and jealousy towards Do-Gi for currently unknown reasons and his desire to overthrow and kill him.

• Kim Chang-hwan as Lee Si-wan^[39]

A bank teller in charge of foreign exchange transactions and reported it to the prosecution. He was arrested on the false charge of attempted murder.

• Yoon Sang-ho as Bae Ki-seok^[39]

A corrupt warden of the Jangsa Prison and member of the Geumsa Organization.

Special appearances

Season 1

• Yoon Do-hyun as Driver Yoon (ep. 1)^[40]
• Lee Young-ae (voice appearance)^[41]
• Park Geun-hyung as Sung-mi's husband (ep. 13)^[42]
• Park Jin-hee as Do Joong-won (ep. 16)^[42][43]

Jin-woo's replacement as deputy chief prosecutor of the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office.

• Ryu Hyun-kyung as Baek Kyung-mi (ep. 16)^[42][43]

Sung-mi's younger sister.

• Yoon Sung-yeo (ep. 15)

A real-life suspect of the Hwaseong serial murders who was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for one of the murders.

Season 2

• Lee Young-ae (voice appearance)
• Shim So-young as Lim Bok-ja (eps. 1-2)
• Namkoong Min as Chun Ji-hoon (ep. 9)^[44]
• Yoo Seung-mok as Cho Jin-woo (ep. 9)^[45]
• Cho Jung-sik and Joo Si-eun as Talk show hosts (ep. 10)^[46]
• Kim So-yeon as First deluxe taxi driver (ep. 16)^[47][48]
• Moon Chae-won as Oh Mi-seo (ep. 16)^[47][49]
• Writer Oh Sang-ho as Bartender (ep. 16)^[50]
• Son Jung-woo as Bartender (ep. 16)^[50]

Production

Season 1

Development

On December 4, 2019, SBS was considering adapting the webtoon The Deluxe Taxi by Carlos and Lee Jae-jin into a television series.^[51] Korean streaming platform Wavve was also invested to the series, and has been previously invested in several other series such as Zombie Detective (2020), Bossam: Steal the Fate (2021), and Alice (2020).^[52]

Casting

On November 20, 2020, Lee Je-hoon, Esom, Kim Eui-sung and Lee Na-eun were confirmed to star in the series.^[13]

On March 8, 2021, Lee Na-eun was removed from the cast following bullying accusations against her.^[53][54] Two days later, she was replaced by Pyo Ye-jin.^[16]

Filming

About sixty percent of the filming for the first season was complete as of March 8, 2021. Lee Na-eun's scenes were removed and had to re-shot.^[53][54]

Season 2

Development

On July 6, 2021, SBS announced the production of the second season of the series.^[55]

Casting

Esom had to withdraw from the cast due to scheduling inconsistencies.^[56] Lee Je-hoon and Pyo Ye-jin were confirmed to reprise their respective roles. Script reading took place on June 12, 2022.^[57] A day later, Kim Eui-sung, Jang Hyuk-jin and Bae Yoo-ram were confirmed to reprise their roles.^[58]

Filming

On July 15, 2022, SBS reported that some of their staff tested positive for COVID-19, causing to temporarily halt the filming in Vietnam.^[59]

Season 3

Development

On April 16, 2023, SBS confirmed that a third season of the series was in the works.^[60]

Casting

Lee Je-hoon, Pyo Ye-jin and Kim Eui-sung will reprise again their roles.^[61] Bae Yoo-ram is also confirmed to appear in the third season.^[62]

Release

The first teaser video and teaser poster were released on December 31, 2020.^[63]

To promote the second season of the series, Viu invited Lee Je-hoon to his first fan-meeting in the Philippines on March 3, 2023,^[64] in Indonesia on March 19, 2023,^[65] and in Singapore on March 25, 2023.^[66] Lee also participated at the FilMart in Hong Kong, where Viu reported that the second season of the series was the most-watched program following the premiere.^[67]

Original soundtrack

Season 1

Taxi Driver OST
Soundtrack album by Various artists
Released	2021
Genre	Soundtrack
Language	Korean English
Label	Kakao Entertainment SBS Contents Hub Music Recipe

Part 1

Released on April 16, 2021 (2021-04-16)^[68]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Silence"	Yoon Do-hyun	Yoon Do-hyun	YB	3:25
2.	"Silence" (inst.)		Yoon Do-hyun		3:25
Total length:					6:50

Part 2

Released on April 23, 2021 (2021-04-23)^[69]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"A Gloomy Letter" (우울한 편지)	Yoo Jae-ha	Yoo Jae-ha	Kwak Jin-eon	3:40
2.	"A Gloomy Letter" ((Classical Ver.))	Yoo Jae-ha	Yoo Jae-ha	Kwak Jin-eon	3:40
3.	"A Gloomy Letter" (inst.)		Yoo Jae-ha		3:40
Total length:					11:00

Part 3

Released on April 30, 2021 (2021-04-30)^[70]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"A Walk" (산책)	Sorri	Lee Han-chul	Pyo Ye-jin	3:48
2.	"A Walk" (inst.)		Lee Han-chul		3:48
Total length:					7:36

Part 4

Released on May 4, 2021 (2021-05-04)^[71]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"All Day"	Jeon Chang-yeob	Advanced RYS	Cha Ji-yeon	3:38
2.	"All Day" (inst.)		Advanced RYS		3:38
Total length:					7:16

Part 5

Released on May 15, 2021 (2021-05-15)^[72]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Run Away"	Simon Dominic	noisemasterminsu Hyeon Sean Tez_Toy Simon Dominic	Simon Dominic	3:16
2.	"Run Away" (inst.)		noisemasterminsu Hyeon Sean Tez_Toy Simon Dominic		3:16
Total length:					6:32

Part 6

Released on May 22, 2021 (2021-05-22)^[73]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Moon Light" (달빛)	Choi Han-sol	Choi Han-sol Choi Young-hoon	Sanha	3:30
2.	"Moon Light" (inst.)		Choi Han-sol Choi Young-hoon		3:30
Total length:					7:00

Part 7

Released on May 29, 2021 (2021-05-29)^[74]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Way Home" (귀로)	Lee Joo-yeob	Son Sung-jae	Yoon Do-hyun	4:25
2.	"Way Home" (inst.)		Son Sung-jae		4:25
Total length:					8:50

Season 2

Taxi Driver 2 OST
Soundtrack album by Various artists
Released	2023
Genre	Soundtrack
Language	Korean English
Label	Kakao Entertainment SBS Contents Hub

Part 1

Released on February 18, 2023 (2023-02-18)^[75]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Fighter"	Hana	Tom and Jerry Safira.K	Ha Hyun-woo (Guckkasten)	3:15
2.	"Fighter" (inst.)		Tom and Jerry Safira.K		3:15
Total length:					6:30

Part 2

Released on February 25, 2023 (2023-02-25)^[76]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Haven" (휴게소)	Zeenan Onetop	Zeenan Onetop	Car, the Garden	3:24
2.	"Haven" (inst.)		Zeenan Onetop		3:24
Total length:					6:48

Part 3

Released on March 4, 2023 (2023-03-04)^[77]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Born This Way"	Zeenan Onetop	Zeenan Onetop	Zeenan	3:40
2.	"Born This Way" (inst.)		Zeenan Onetop		3:40
Total length:					7:20

Part 4

Released on March 10, 2023 (2023-03-10)^[78]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Wonderful Night" (아름다운 밤)	Park Sung-yong	Park Sung-yong Im Gwang-gyun	N.Flying	3:34
2.	"Wonderful Night" (inst.)		Park Sung-yong Im Gwang-gyun		3:34
Total length:					7:08

Part 5

Released on March 18, 2023 (2023-03-18)^[79]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"All My Heart" (진심)	Yeonso NEZ Gowoon	Yeonso NEZ Gowoon	Kang A-sol	3:33
2.	"All My Heart" (inst.)		Yeonso NEZ Gowoon		3:30
Total length:					7:03

Part 6

Released on March 25, 2023 (2023-03-25)^[80]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Face to Face"	Zeenan Lee Jung-won Clef Crew	Zeenan Lee Jung-won Clef Crew	Kang Seung-yoon (Winner)	3:02
2.	"Face to Face" (inst.)		Zeenan Lee Jung-won Clef Crew		3:02
Total length:					6:04

Viewership

Season		Episode number																Average
		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16
	1	1.926	2.607	2.452	3.117	2.636	3.065	2.847	2.824	2.635	3.072	2.742	3.017	2.762	2.923	2.746	2.871	2.765
	2	2.370	2.155	2.448	2.364	2.840	2.912	2.355	3.072	2.537	3.337	2.664	3.387	3.098	3.496	2.870	4.005	2.869

Taxi Driver : South Korea viewers per episode (millions)

Source: Audience measurement performed nationwide by Nielsen Korea.^[81][82]

Average TV viewership ratings (season 1)
Ep.	Part	Original broadcast date	Average audience share
			Nielsen Korea[81]		TNmS[83]
			Nationwide	Seoul	Nationwide
1	1	April 9, 2021	8.7% (7th)	9.4% (5th)	7.3% (10th)
	2		10.7% (3rd)	11.2% (3rd)	8.7% (7th)
2	1	April 10, 2021	7.3% (9th)	8.5% (5th)	5.7% (20th)
	2		13.5% (3rd)	15.0% (3rd)	11.4% (3rd)
3	1	April 16, 2021	9.8% (5th)	10.3% (4th)	10.0% (5th)
	2		13.6% (3rd)	14.5% (2nd)	12.7% (1st)
4	1	April 17, 2021	11.5% (4th)	11.8% (4th)	11.4% (3rd)
	2		15.6% (1st)	16.3% (1st)	14.6% (1st)
5	1	April 23, 2021	12.3% (4th)	13.3% (4th)	11.2% (4th)
	2		14.2% (3rd)	15.6% (1st)	12.8% (3rd)
6	1	April 24, 2021	8.7% (5th)	9.2% (5th)	9.0% (5th)
	2		16.0% (3rd)	16.8% (3rd)	15.2% (3rd)
7	1	April 30, 2021	12.9% (4th)	14.3% (2nd)	11.3% (4th)
	2		15.1% (2nd)	16.3% (1st)	13.4% (3rd)
8	1	May 1, 2021	8.3% (5th)	9.0% (5th)	8.6% (5th)
	2		15.2% (3rd)	15.9% (3rd)	14.4% (3rd)
9	1	May 7, 2021	12.0% (4th)	12.9% (4th)	12.1% (4th)
	2		14.7% (3rd)	16.0% (1st)	14.5% (2nd)
10	1	May 8, 2021	10.1% (4th)	11.2% (5th)	10 4% (4th)
	2		15.4% (3rd)	17.0% (3rd)	14.9% (3rd)
11	1	May 14, 2021	12.4% (4th)	13.9% (4th)	11.0% (5th)
	2		14.6% (3rd)	16.3% (1st)	12.1% (3rd)
12	1	May 15, 2021	10.7% (5th)	11.6% (5th)	N/A
	2		15.3% (3rd)	16.1% (3rd)
13	1	May 21, 2021	12.2% (4th)	12.9% (4th)	12.4% (4th)
	2		14.4% (3rd)	15.6% (1st)	13.9% (3rd)
14	1	May 22, 2021	10.2% (4th)	10.7% (5th)	10.3% (5th)
	2		15.5% (3rd)	16.1% (3rd)	14.6% (3rd)
15	1	May 28, 2021	13.2% (4th)	13.8% (3rd)	12.6% (4th)
	2		14.4% (3rd)	15.2% (1st)	14.1% (3rd)
16	1	May 29, 2021	10.9% (5th)	11.9% (4th)	11.0% (4th)
	2		15.3% (3rd)	16.6% (3rd)	14.6% (3rd)
Average			12.6%	13.6%	11.9%[d]
The blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. N/A denotes ratings that were not published.

Average TV viewership ratings (season 2)
Ep.	Original broadcast date	Average audience share
		Nielsen Korea[82]		TNmS[84]
		Nationwide	Seoul	Nationwide
1	February 17, 2023	12.1% (3rd)	12.8% (2nd)	10.4% (3rd)
2	February 18, 2023	10.3% (2nd)	10.9% (2nd)	N/A
3	February 24, 2023	13.2% (3rd)	14.2% (1st)	10.5% (3rd)
4	February 25, 2023	11.3% (2nd)	11.7% (2nd)	10.7% (2nd)
5	March 3, 2023	14.7% (1st)	16.3% (1st)	N/A
6	March 11, 2023	14.4% (2nd)	15.5% (2nd)	12.4% (2nd)
7	March 17, 2023	13.0% (2nd)	13.7% (2nd)	11.8% (2nd)
8	March 18, 2023	16.0% (2nd)	17.0% (2nd)	N/A
9	March 24, 2023	13.4% (2nd)	14.1% (2nd)	11.6% (2nd)
10	March 25, 2023	17.7% (1st)	18.1% (1st)	11.8% (2nd)
11	March 31, 2023	14.5% (1st)	15.5% (1st)	11.4% (2nd)
12	April 1, 2023	18.3% (1st)	19.4% (1st)	13.8% (1st)
13	April 7, 2023	16.1% (1st)	17.4% (1st)	13.0% (1st)
14	April 8, 2023	18.3% (1st)	19.4% (1st)	16.7% (1st)
15	April 14, 2023	15.7% (1st)	16.0% (1st)	11.9% (2nd)
16	April 15, 2023	21.0% (1st)	21.8% (1st)	N/A
Average		15.0%	15.9%	12.2%[d]
Special
1	February 16, 2023	3.6% (16th)	4.4% (12th)	3.2% (18th)
2	April 21, 2023	5.2% (8th)	5.8% (6th)	5.2% (11th)
Highlight
1	March 4, 2023	3.6% (15th)	3.6% (15th)	4.8% (10th)
The blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings. N/A denotes ratings that were not published.

Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination

Award ceremony	Year	Category	Nominee / Work	Result	Ref.
APAN Star Awards	2022	Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries	Lee Je-hoon	Nominated	[85]
		Best Supporting Actress	Cha Ji-yeon	Nominated
Korea PD Awards	2022	Best TV Drama	Taxi Driver	Nominated	[86]
SBS Drama Awards	2021	Grand Prize (Daesang)	Lee Je-hoon	Nominated	[87]
		Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama		Won	[88]
		Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama	Esom	Won	[89]
			Pyo Ye-jin	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama	Kim Eui-sung	Won	[90]
		Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama	Cha Ji-yeon	Won
		Scene Stealer Award	Shim So-young	Won	[91]
		Best New Actor	Choi Hyun-wook	Won	[92]
		Best Supporting Team	Taxi Driver	Nominated
	2023	Grand Prize (Daesang)	Lee Je-hoon	Won	[93]
		Excellence Award, Actor in a Seasonal Drama	Shin Jae-ha	Won
		Excellence Award, Actress in a Seasonal Drama	Pyo Ye-jin	Won
		Best Supporting Actor in a Seasonal Drama	Jang Hyuk-jin	Won
			Bae Yoo-ram	Won
		Netizen's Best SBS Drama of 2023	Taxi Driver 2	Won
		Best Young Actress	Ahn Chae-heum	Won	[94]
		Scene Stealer Award	Go Sang-ho	Won	[95]
			Byun Jung-hee	Won
Seoul International Drama Awards	2021	Outstanding Hallyu Drama Award	Taxi Driver	Won	[96]
		Outstanding Korean Actor	Lee Je-hoon	Nominated

Notes

1. Writer Oh Sang-ho only wrote 10 episodes of season one, while writer Lee Ji-hyun wrote the remaining episodes of the first season.
2. Season one is only available on Netflix.
3. Lee Ho-cheol played double roles in this drama.
4. This average rating is calculated based on the published ratings. The exact average rating is unknown due to multiple ratings not being published.