The Apple TV+ show is the first K-Drama made for the streaming platform and it was released as part of its launch in South Korea.

Helmed by A Tale of Two Sisters director Kim Jee-woon, the sci-fi thriller follows brain scientist Sewon and his search for answers after building a machine that can sync his mind with the recently deceased, giving him access to their memories and abilities.

Kim and lead actor Lee spoke with Newsweek about the show’s dramatic finale, which was full of numerous unexpected twists and a shocking cliffhanger.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for the finale of Dr. Brain

On the twists and turns in Dr. Brain’s finale

The six-episode series ended with Sewon coming face-to-face, or should we say mind-to-mind, with Dr. Myung Tae-suk (Moon Sung-geun), the man responsible for first creating brain-sync technology.

Terminally-ill, Dr. Myung hatched a scheme to live forever by forcing his own psyche into Do-yoon’s mind, erasing the young boy’s existing self forever, and it was up to Sewon to save his son.

He does this by brain-syncing with both Dr. Myung and Do-yoon and forcing the former out by persuading the latter to trust him, and not the man trying to kill him.

Actor Lee admitted he “didn’t expect” such a dramatic climax to the series whilst reflecting on how the finale blurred the lines between the real-world and the thoughts of Sewon, Dr. Myung and Do-yoon.

“It was something that I didn’t expect at all, having this real-world and the psyche of so many people just kind of mixing together,” Lee said. “So, I thought it was very interesting, and there’s more room for the worldview to expand going forward.”

He added: “It was kind of like a Metaverse as well, and I think there could be a new storyline in [it], you know? The the brain of some other person [could be] like a parallel universe. So I thought it was very interesting.”

Luckily for Sewon, his plan works and he is able to save his son while Dr. Myung dies from the impact of the triple brain-sync.

But Sewon’s joy doesn’t last long as he later discovers someone in his home, the disembodied psyche of Dr. Myung, who reaches out to grab him.

It’s there, in that shocking moment, that the show ends, leaving many unanswered questions in its wake: Is Dr. Myung going to take over Sewon’s mind? How was Do-yoon affected by the villain’s machinations? Will Sewon continue to brain-sync with the dead to solve cases?

Will there be a Season 2 of Dr. Brain?

Lee claimed the cast and crew have hopes for there to be a second season, but that “nothing is set in stone” as yet.

“When we were shooting Season 1 we did talk about maybe a possible Season 2. We all said that it’d be nice if there is a Season 2, but we don’t have anything planned out yet. So nothing is set in stone at [this] time.

“But, I guess Season 1 needs to be well received in order for us to really film Season 2, so I just hope people love it.”

Of what he’d like to see in a forthcoming season if it was to be greenlit, he went on: “Season 1 was about families, Sewon’s family, and I think Season 2 we have more room to manoeuvre, and I think the world view can be further expanded.

“For example, we just talked about, you know, [Sewon] having abilities after the brain scans. I mean, that could lead to like a superhero of some sort, right?

“So, I think there’s a lot of different chances that we could take, and different routes that we could take, so I’m really looking forward to a possible Season 2.”

The Parasite actor then joked: “One thing I hope is that the brain-syncing helmet will become more simpler, so it’ll be easy for me to act in it!”

Director Kim added to Lee’s sentiment regarding Season 1, explaining that he hadn’t written the cliffhanger ending with the intention of making another season.

He explained: “I didn’t direct that ending with a second season in mind. I just wanted to highlight the fact that although the story was over, in a sense… I wanted to add and end the series with a very intriguing note by intriguing the audience once again using a touch of extra [drama].

“So, they would go like, ‘What’s this? Is it another world? Have their memories been transferred to another database or something?’

“It could be good if we continue that with a Season 2, but I didn’t do that specifically with a second season in mind.

“I just wanted to underscore the fact that the world of Dr. Brain and brain science was infinitely scalable and versatile, and I wanted to leave some room for interpretation.”

Dr. Brain is available to stream in full on Apple TV+ now.