Song Hye-kyo, Lee Do-hyun, Lim Ji-yeon, Yeom Hye-ran, Park Sung-hoon, and Jung Sung-il round out the ensemble cast.

[5] Some scenes are based on a true event in 2006 when a group of middle schoolers from Cheongju, South Korea, extorted money from their classmate for about a month, repeatedly beating and burning her using objects in the process.

[40][41] In July 2022, The Glory confirmed production with ensemble casting of Song Hye-kyo, Lee Do-hyun, Lim Ji-yeon, Yeom Hye-ran, Park Sung-hoon, and Jung Sung-il.

[9] Two days after the release of The Glory Part 1 on December 30, 2022, it ranked ninth globally on Netflix's TV shows category.

[47] Writing for Forbes, Joan MacDonald praised Song Hye-kyo for her "nuanced portrayal of Dong-eun" as well as Jung Ji-so who played teen Dong-eun, and wrote "The Glory features a fair share of unexpected plot twists, veering the story from almost horror to melodrama to murder mystery.

"[49] Chris Vognar of San Francisco Chronicle called the series "visually arresting", "carefully constructed" and "delights in every step".

"[52] The series has been criticized for its graphic portrayal of violence, but it has also been praised for shedding a light on the ongoing abuses among students in South Korean schools.

[53] The violent scenes reminded the country's viewers of a 2006 incident where a middle schooler was beaten and burned by her classmates over the course of 20 days, not allowing her wounds to heal.

[54] In March 2023, an anonymous online post accused the director of the series Ahn Gil-ho of physically assaulting a classmate when he studied in the Philippines in 1996.