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Taec, along with Wooyoung, T-ara's Eun-jung, IU, JOO and miss A's Suzy will star in "Dream High". The story revolves around idols and their dreams and aspirations.

What’s with the influx of idols in the K-drama-sphere?

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Written by On November 6, 2010

This article is taken from Joongang Ilbo/joinsmsn. It does not represent our writers’ opinions but I thought it interesting to crosspost it on Seoulbeats. Also translated by yours truly!

Our TV screens are afire with K-pop singers these days. Headlining the current idol wave are upcoming dramas, KBS2 TV’s “Dream High”, SBS’ “It’s Okay, Daddy’s Girl” and MBC’s family sitcom “All My Love”. These ambitious plotlines from Korea’s three main networks are to be played out by a host of K-pop idols.

“Practicality” is the main reason why singers are turning into actors. SBS Drama Department Head Goo Bon-geun says, “the idols themselves actually very much yearn to act”, “as a singer your routes are limited, but if one ventures into acting, his or her prospects in the entertainment scene are considerably widened. Idol agencies are well aware of this, hence much support is given to singers to appear in dramas.”

Taecyeon, along with Wooyoung, T-ara's Eunjung, IU, JOO and miss A's Suzy will star in "Dream High". The story revolves around idols and their dreams and aspirations.

Putting popular stars in drama lead roles can attract more sponsors which then aids the costs of production. And that’s what makes such decisions uncommon, as evidenced overseas, in the Japanese and Chinese drama markets.

Originally from Baby V.O.X, Lee Hee-jin stars with Super Junior's Donghae, C.N.BLUE's Kang Min-hyuk and 4Minute's Nam Ji-hyun in "It's Okay, Daddy's Girl". The story depicts the difficulties a family faces when their head of household gets into an accident.

Up until recently, people would often dismiss singers-turned-actors. However, with Girls’ Generation member Yoona‘s appearance in “You’re My Destiny”, Kim Hyun-joong in “Boys Over Flowers”, Jung Yong-hwa in “You’re Beautiful” and Taec in “Cinderella’s Sister”, singers have been demonstrating commendable skills in acting. Some have even received good critiques. A drama in this midst that must be mentioned is recently wrapped up “Sungkyungkwan Scandal”. With Park Yoochun in its lead role, he has given a good portrayal of the main character’s intricacies, exemplifying a professional actor’s efforts. This swept away the initial doubt many had when he was picked for the role.

Currently featured as a make-believe couple on "We Got Married", Jo Kwon and Ga-in will play a pair of twins in "All My Love". Acting alongside them is fellow idol and BEAST leader Yoon Doo-joon.

This trend of casting idols may be on the up-and-up, with profits to flourish along with all things Korean going glocal but it comes with a price. By putting less-experienced actors in the spotlight, the quality of dramas is assuredly and significantly lowered.

(joinmsn)

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  • http://woaicpop.blogspot.com Haiyen

    This is why I love American artists more. THey specialize and are actually GOOD at something. Most Kpop Idols I see just have average vocal and sub-par acting skills, and what’s with the always over-the-top, overreacted, exaggerated expressions? (but hey they got the looks and that’s what counts in Korean entertainment industry no?)

    I think I’m in the final phase of Kpop fangirling (I mean I’m 21 already, it’s about time :”>). Most Kdramas have the same freaking plot anyway…

    But here’s the question I want to post to you. Among Kpop singers who venture into acting, who do you think fare the best (read: who sucks least?)

    • reimin

      Yoon Eun Hye is the best, though she dropped singing already for acting.

    • lgkjh

      lee seung gi. but with him it’s more about his star personality than himself i think. and really?!?! kim hyun joong?!?! ya right.

    • Knifey

      Bullshit. American singers do the same thing. Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez, Rihanna, 50 Cent, Eminem, on and on and on have all been given acting jobs because of their popularity.

      • http://woaicpop.blogspot.com Haiyen

        Erm, sorry! Apparently I haven’t made myself clear enough. I mean the majority of American artists fall neatly into singers and actors/actresses. JT, Brit, Mariah, JLo, Em, 50cent never starred in a drama or TV series (as far as I know or I may be wrong), mostly in movies and they are or terrible and their acting skills are horrendous to say the least.

        And what’s I’m pointing here is that it’s a TREND for Kpop artists to dabble between dramas and singing but it’s not that popular in the states. (Singers you mention above can buy their roles but when they crash and burn, the

        On a totally irrelevant note, how Jamie Foxx got both Grammies and an Oscar is beyond me. HIs portrayal of Ray Charles wasn’t that great and I can never listen to his music (That Gold digger is quite catchy though)

        • http://evacuatewithstyle.org/blog Amy

          america’s market is SO much bigger than korea’s that you can’t really compare it on that level. and even within korea, the number of idols who cross over into acting makes a minute percentage of the industry.

          i’m not trying to defend any of the crappy idol-actors out there, because believe me, my blood boils that taec has yet again gotten an acting gig, and hyun-joong has gotten another lead role under his belt — both with little to no skill at all in acting — but it’s not apt to compare all the american artists who are just one thing or another with the korean ones.

        • jay

          we’re talking 2 different industries here.
          kpop idols dont need voices.
          idols in dramas dont need acting skills.
          they’re there as eye candy. they serve that purpose well. end of story.
          western audiences have their own standards and theyre different from asian standards.

    • Kat

      I don’t know what you’re trying to do comparing American artist and Kpop idols because obviously it’s 2 whole different things. There are very good Korean actors and I’m sure you don’t know that much all the dramas/movies to say such a thing. I truly loved Dae Jang Geum and more recently Smile You.
      American movies also have some redundant ideas like (in action movies)”saving the whole world once again” but well if you take the most basic K dramas it’s true they have the same freaking plot (even though I think it somehow changed lately). Most of Kdramas have unrealistic plots but that’s where the real fun is!
      Idols do suck at acting, I can’t stand any of them…

    • ahana

      wow ur the only one who hates kpop idols what a fuckin loser ur not any better..

  • Xenia

    Actually, all in all the acting level in Korean dramas is very low, even if we talk about professional actors. Of course there are some fortunate exceptions, but still. So it’s not that hard for idols to look passably on this poor-skilled background.
    Drama directors are often even worse – I mean, half of Korean dramas looks like bad attempt at clownery.

    • http://woaicpop.blogspot.com Haiyen

      I couldn’t have said it better myself :) And yet it seems like people can’t get enough of Kdramas. For me, when you talk about Korean entertainment industry I mostly pay attention to Kpop (since it’s a lot easier and less time consuming to see a 4-minute video than a 50-minute episode of a Kdrama). I only watched about 5 or 6 Kdramas in my life and although I enjoyed some of them *punch self for that*, they’re not really memorable and very similar to each other.

      Oh and the actors and actresses, they’re so replaceable. I mean you can just put this actor into another actor’s role and they will be just the same. The only “fortunate exceptions” that you mentioned above, for me, are Seo Ji Sub and Won Bin.

      • Xenia

        I enjoyed some K-dramas, too. I just had to remind myself that most K-dramas are more like manga or anime, so I shouldn’t await for realism either in acting or in plot. And still I dropped way more dramas than watched to the final episode.
        I also couldn’t help but smile when I saw my comment and yours right above it. We, like, read ech other’s thoughts =)

        • mimi

          I think that’s too judgemental. There r good dramas n bad dramas in all languages.
          The same with American drama. There r some good shows n other wannabes. I am not a Korean and I can understand part of what u r saying. Yes, there r some horrible shows which use the same formula. But there r some beautiful dramas which u can’t find in any other language. Can u honestly say 90% of the American shows r good? Here u r talking about another country n people with different aesthetic sense n taste. Just bcoz it’s different from the American taste doesn’t mean it’s bad. Let’s appreciate what’s good in other languages n industries n remember that they r catering to their audience.

          To some of the Koreans, I want to say: yes, some of it might be cringe-worthy. But don’t feel so apologetic about it. This happens in every industry n there is always room for improvement, no?

          I am an Indian and oh yes, we have many cringe-worthy shows. But there are also some good ones which keep my faith in television alive.

    • http://evacuatewithstyle.org/blog Amy

      man, you must not have watched any good kdramas ever, or you sit on a very lofty high pedestal where you think an entire country’s television sector is a joke.

      • Xenia

        I never said “all dramas” or “all artists”. But 90% are no good in my books, yes. At least, from more popular dramas that are usually subbed into English.

        • http://evacuatewithstyle.org/blog Amy

          90% is a pretty judgmental number and i can personally think of a good number of dramas that were good on all fronts, and so many actors and actresses who “are professionals” who are excellent at what they do. but hey, i hope the dramas you watched in whatever language are epic in terms of everything!

          • Xenia

            Epic is extremely rare, in any language. But the relation of good to bad dramas for Korean tv seems very low. In US, for example, that ratio is higher – in my opinion. I guess it’s because of lack of money, lack of directors’ competence and too unrealistic plots/acting.
            Well, I’ll be happy at least as long as they don’t add that god forbidden captions and visual effects as they do in K-variety shows… XD

      • Geoff

        To be fair, their entire television sector is a bit of a joke.

    • http://seoulbeats.com/2010/11/whats-with-the-influx-of-idols-in-the-k-drama-sphere/ Jelly

      I would say the best of korean actors/actresses are on par with the best of american actors/actresses. Every county has exceptional people in acting who are passionate in what they do. For you to say that professional korean actors’ acting level is “very low”, just shows that you’re ignorant. Obviously you haven’t seen the good k-dramas for you to say that “Korean dramas looks like bad attempt at clownery”. It’s really insulting to Koreans for you to say these kinds of things when you probably aren’t even qualified to critic Korean dramas like that.

      • Geoff

        You’re just upset because someone didn’t say something sickly sweet about your beloved korean gods and goddesses. It’s fine, we understand that you’re not allowed to say anything like that.

        However, unlike you, I don’t worship them as if they were gods walking this earth. So I’ll just keep saying what I like, and I’d ask that you don’t do me the disservice of trying to censor me based upon your belief system. Thanks.

        • http://seoulbeats.com/2010/11/whats-with-the-influx-of-idols-in-the-k-drama-sphere/ Jelly

          Uhhh…I wasn’t even talking to you so you should mind your own business. I didn’t even quote you so how can i be “censoring” you? Lol. And actually I have lived in Korea, in a city as well as the country so I very much know how the Korean life is like. And me thinking of all koreans as gods and goddessess…ahahahaha hilarious! I know very well the faults of koreans and don’t even think highly of many korean celebrities. In fact I don’t own a single k-pop poster. So I’d thank you to not make assumptions about people.

          The only reason why I wrote what I wrote is because their tone of writing was sooo condesending towards Koreans while thinking very highly of Americans. Some things that was said were false and obviously biased and that’s why I pointed it out.

          • lay

            THIS.

      • Xenia

        Duh, learn to read. Including parts like “there are some fortunate exceptions” and “HALF of Korean dramas”. I may be “ignorant” but you are not qualified for telling me that with your selective perception of information.

        • Geoff

          They only qualification they need is that they spend 23 hours a day watching k-dramas then they lick their k-pop star posters for 1 hour and then repeat the cycle.

          K-pop fans soon calm down once you marry them off to a soju-ridden ‘fisty’ korean farmer from gwangju and they learn what living in korea is about.

        • http://seoulbeats.com/2010/11/whats-with-the-influx-of-idols-in-the-k-drama-sphere/ Jelly

          I admitt that I did select certain phrases of what you said to rebut against you but that was only because I was angry. I know that doesn’t excuse me calling you ignorant or not qualified so I apologize for that. However I still think that what you said was rude and insulting. I know you’re not the only one who said these things but I just decided to reply to yours.

  • asianromance

    “Up until recently, people would often dismiss singers-turned-actors. However, with Girls’ Generation Yoona‘s appearance in “You’re My Destiny”, Kim Hyun-joong in “Boys Over Flowers”, Jung Yong-hwa in “You’re Beautiful” and Taec in “Cinderella’s Sister”, singers have been demonstrating commendable skills in acting.”

    i think this article picked the most lackluster examples and roles! Yoon Eun Hye and Yoon Kye Sang (formerly of G.O.D.) would have been a great examples. Bi is also a great example, but I guess he isn’t your typical idol. Or what abt Eric from Shinhwa? Maybe they are so good at acting that people have forgotten them as singers?

    Yoochun did a pretty good job in SKKS, but I think it was mostly because the Sun-joon character suited his inexperience and was one of the most well-written and well-developed characters in kdramaland.

    • reimin

      i agree with your examples. But perhaps, since they are not active in singing, the author did not used them as examples. But if there are idols who broke into acting successfully, then i agree with YEH, YKS and Eric. But lol, seriously, Kim Hyun-joong in “Boys Over Flowers”? that was the most criticized character I’ve seen.

    • its

      LOL I laughed when I read that

  • reimin

    it works well in Taiwan and Japan.
    but what exactly is an “idol” in Korea? i think they mostly refer to members of singing group?
    in TW, idols are referred to both drama actors and singers. Ethan and Joe Chen are idols though they don’t sing. and usually, it’s the other way around, they start as actors before venturing into music. but it’s kinda mixed already as a lot of singers are also actors, and they get lead dramas one after the other. think- F4, Rainie, Show, S.H.E, FRH, Angela etc etc..

    in Japan, I don’t think there are a lot of singers trying to be actors though. The market is huge for music and singers usually stick to their field. It can only be applicable to the JE boys who pretty much juggle singing and acting and what not. They have been a strong force on Jdramas for years. and having a popular JE idol as male lead, its a common thing.

    i think in Korea, it’s still a new thing going on. But maybe if they get experience, then they can learn as they progress.

    • maldita

      Matsumoto Jun and Ikuta Toma are actually pretty good actors. I was surprised they were from JE.

      • reimin

        why surprised? most of them are really serious with their craft. I think Kamenashi nails his characters each time but i think the most celebrated of JE actors is Arashi’s Ninomiya. He was casted in Clint Eeastwood’s movie, the Academy Award nominee Letters From Iwo Jima. And oh boy, was his protrayal critically acclaimed.

        • maldita

          I didn’t know anything about J-pop back then. Only heard about JE as a boyband factory or whatever. I thought the two guys were regular actors…

          Yeah, some idols DO have legit acting talent. They’re rare exceptions though, with all the idols trying their luck in acting.

          • reimin

            yeah, me too. i was just watching Jdramas and gushing over their male leads, and i was so surprised to know they are boyband members who sing theme songs of their dramas and so on. when you really dont know anything abt an actor, you can judge objectively.

        • Daydream

          the thing i find with JE boys is that most of them are better at acting than they are at singing, which is rather ironic since most did started out as music artists…

      • belyer20

        Matsumoto Jun is ok i the drama parts, but a lot of japanese love over acting in their comedies. I think they do well with in mysstery/dramas and medical dramas though.

        • reimin

          they usually combine drama and comedy. one time you’re laughing and next time you go all awwwww..But i agree, jdramas do have excellent comedies. that’s why i laugh at some Kdramas attempt at comedy bec it’s just so subpar.

      • lay

        i’m no fan of these JE boy bands but i do admire and follow them as actors like Arashi’s MatsuJun, Nino and Sakurai, Kame and all SMAP members.

      • crazygirl

        Why is that Kimutaku is irrelevant these days for JE fans? He’s one of the best cross-overs from boy band SMAP to serious actors.

        • crazygirl

          *correcting my statement – “Why is it that KimuTaku seems irrelevant these days for JE fans? He’s one of the best cross-overs from being part of an idol group (SMAP) to a serious actor.”

          Anyway, I don’t like the trend that the Kdrama PDs started to cast idol group members just because they’re popular and likely help in selling the dramas to fans. There are plenty of actors out there who are probably more qualified to get these roles and the chance gets snatched away from them simply because the other is more popular. It’s a bit insulting for those who got casted after going through the auditioning process.

          I love kpop idols, but a lot of them are inexperienced with acting. They might have acting chops there somewhere but they need to do small roles first or at least go through acting workshops to deserve those roles they got.

          There are a few exceptions as have been mentioned by commenters here. I’d like to add TOP from Big Bang. I admit I am a huge fan of the boy group but when he did acting with I am Sam and recently, with Iris, I was really cringing at his subpar acting. He got those roles because of his status as an idol group member and he was promising with the MVs of BB. When he was casted in Into the Fire and as a lead role, I was all but questioning the director’s sanity. But, he definitely has shown that he can hold his own. It’s not ground breaking acting but it was decent enough that a lot of people have considered him a great find. I liked the fact that he took time with his role, immersing into it. His nomination in the Daejong Film Fest which is a very prestigious event is a great indicator that people from the film industry saw his potential to grow even bigger as an actor. He’s still rough around the edges but he can turn into a diamond if given a few more challenging roles.

    • Geoff

      Moses didn’t really like idols, they got him really upset.

      • Heyitssnsd

        LOL

  • maldita

    I’m actually fine with idols getting roles in dramas. Being an idol can only last a few years, so I don’t blame them for wanting to branch out a bit. What irritates me, though, is casting idols in LEAD roles in dramas, especially those that practically have no prior acting experience. Prime examples are Kim Hyunjoong in BOF, and my beloved Yunho in HTTG. I’d rather see idols work their way up from bit roles to lead roles, kinda like Siwon did. He did debut as an actor before Super Junior even debuted.

  • Jazie

    They can do whatever they feel like.
    Some of the idols are multi-talented, u nver know
    thats why I dont judge an actor/idol before watch them act
    and the US example…Justin beiber in CSI that one time???

    • Jazie

      And the whole entire glee cast?

      • Geoff

        No, not the entire glee cast.

      • kim

        fail

  • http://evacuatewithstyle.org/blog Amy

    yoon eun-hye, yoon kye-sang, lee seung-gi, eric are all pretty good examples of people who transcended their idol labels to become good actors. this of course might mean they were better off as actors than they were as idols anyway (and this is pretty true for 75% of the idols i just listed).

    then, people like yoona, taec, eunjung, jo kwon, ga-in are all examples of people who were made into actors because of whatever popularity they might have now as idols, which is why i think there no quality to their acting.

    • hapacalgirl

      I agree about the 4 you posted that are great examples of singers turned actors, although I will say Eric is a pretty decent rapper in Shinhwa so I think he is good in both fields. But you are wrong about Eunjung, she actually had a couple roles under her belt even before she debuted as a singer and although you may not agree with my opinion I think she did pretty decent in “Coffee House” especially in the 2nd half where her character was a little more mature and therefore less overacting. If T-ara never debuted I wouldn’t be surprised if she popped up as an actress eventually. Also I am not a fan of Yoona in the least but I think she was okay in “9 ins 2 outs” and had she put a little more work in acting instead of becoming an idol singer (sorry but girl cannot sing to save her life) she may have had some potential although I will say she needs to learn how to act with male leads because Cinderella Man and You are My Destiny was AWKWARD. Another person who I think is doing decent in the idol->actor transition is Choi Siwon. He definitely needs work but he has great comic timing. While I am definitely not liking this idol turned into actor trend going on in kpop/kdrama I think there are some with potential.

      On a side note, being an old school kpop and Baby vox fan, I was surprised to hear Lee HeeJin is going to be in a drama.

      • geezer

        Eunjung still got the roll because of her popularity from T-ara. She did a passable job and the story and script gave the character ample opurtunity to be liked. However she does have this same opened mouth expression that she does the whole series and i believe actresses like YEH, etc, would have been able to inject a lot more charm in that type of character

  • jakessess

    personally i think kyesung from god, eric from shinhwa, and eun hye did pretty well with their acting

    lee seung gi, i think most of it is his star power. though he’s pretty decent. hyunjoong is just terrible….makes me cringe everytime he acts. its always the cold, mean cool character that he plays. perhaps if he plays a more comedic one, i think he could be good.

    but theres such an influx of idols going into acting i just don’t feel like watching anything anymore. its no wonder those actors/actresses at the award shows show no responses for idols. its pretty much a joke.

    some exceptions of course but a majority are a fail.
    its ridiculous.

    • Geoff

      It will lead to the death of Hallyu in south east asia… FACT

      • reimin

        what will lead to what?

  • cheerios

    are you all surprised? The number one thing that the Korean Entertainment wants is LOOKS. What’s so surprising about idols being in dramas when you know that the freaking whole country caters to beauty? well, the world, actually.

    • Geoff

      Because in Korea, the younger and better you look, the richer the famous brand CEO that you get forced to be a naughty ‘waitress’ for.

  • Hiroshima, mon amour

    Eric from Shinhwa was awesome in Que Sera Sera! He’s the only idol-turned-actor that was really, truly awesome. Yoochun was solid. Surprisingly solid. Eun-hye is also solid, but she didn’t blew my mind. The rest… blah.

    • lay

      yes, he was awesome in Que Sera Sera but quite average (but still so much better than some mentioned in the article)in his other dramas.i hope that he’d do more of this kind of drama in the future. and he’s one of the reasons (the other is Kim Gang Woo) i’ll be watching Poseidon.

  • lay

    i’d say, one current idol who has successfully turned himself into an ACTOR is TOP, the one whose talent has been rightfully recognised by the industry and praised by critics. i wonder why no one mentions about him at all.

    • Peter

      Probably because you’re talking nonsense and no one agrees.

      • lay

        i guess those movie experts who nominated him in the Golden Bell Movie Awards recently for his role in Into the Fire are also nonsensical people eh?

        • lay

          oh … and the those American movie critics including that Prof. Matthew Sommers from Stanford University who praised and complimented his acting when the movie was shown there are also nonsensical too rite? riiiite. u must be the king of movie experts and critics then.

          • Peter

            Hmm.. Golden Bell ‘Select-an-idol’ Biased Korean Movie Awards and Associate Professor of Chinese History (not film), Matthew Sommers. How can I, as a layman, go up against such a heady selection of movie critics!!

          • lay

            you’re rite … how can you as a layman go up against those movie critics by impliedly saying that they were nonsensical. it would be acceptable to me if you said it was your personal opinion that TOP (or anyone else for that matter) is not a good actor … i won’t argue with that cos you’re entitled to your opinion. by the way … Golden Bell “Select-an-idol’Bisase Korean Movie Awards?? did you count how many ‘idols’ nominated in that event? or at least, know the other nominees he went up against in the category he was nominated for? so what if one of those who think he’s a good actor was not a prof or assoc. prof in film or in the acting faculty? at least, his opinion matters to the industry unlike that of you and me cos we’re just laymaaaaan.

        • kim

          who cares that’s from taiwan, they can’t even get their name in the olympics. oh wow a republic of china event…next!

          • lay

            huh … what the hell you’re talking about? oh i see … i made a mistake there. it’s not Golden Bell but Grand Bell Film Award or DaeJong Film Awards which is a Korean event. anyways, what’s your problem with those countries’ events? does a country’s greatness measured by whether it gets in the olympics or not? lame.

          • reimin

            Golden Bell? if for movies, that’s Golden Horse for TW. and don’t mock the awards show just bec its from TW. how irrational of some people.

  • jojo

    Oh well, korean artists are branching out everything because of the MONEY . This is TRUE guys .
    korean artists, if they only specialized in singing or acting only , they might not have enough money, or even they don’t get paid so high to be rich .

    Do you know that some top 10, or top 20 actors or actress are trying to sing for the OST ?
    I think they felt ashame too but they will get good pay when they sing for the OST . For example, actor Kim Mung Min, the top 10 of Korean actor sang in 1 OST
    So , don’t blame Korean idols branching out in acting .
    They want more fame and more money in their pockets .

    In contrast, American artists, if they very good in the field they’re specialized for, they will get really really good pay . All of their efforts either in singing or acting only get good paids
    That why American artists try very hard in their own field if they know they’re very good in it
    If American artist is good in acting, they will become a multi-milionair for sure . Why they have to try to sing for OST ?
    Think about it !!!!

    • reimin

      if you can sing for the OST, then why not??
      i really think you have some weird way of analyzing things. some artists do not want to be confined in one area. if they have the talent to branch out then why not.
      For example, Jay Chou is a big Mandopop star who has got that “elite” status of a celebrity. Why? Because he can do everything. He’s a major singer already, but he composes his music, directs his own MVs, branched out to movies and acts, directs, and writes his own script, and sings his theme song.
      It’s not for the pay. He’s a multi- millionaire or billionare already but he wanted to show he can do and contribute more for the industry.
      That’s what artists are.
      Of course if you can only act, then don’t sing for the OST.

  • jojo

    one more thing, American artists, if you can’t make good money in your own field. Many American will look down on you.
    That’s why many famous American actors and actress don’t do CFs or advertising on TVs .
    They need to prove themselves through acting, either on TV series or movies .

    • lay

      mmm … i do believe that some of these famous American actors and actresses did a lot of CFs for Japan??! well … i guess the money the Japanese paid them to appear in those CFs was too hard to resist. anyways, what is wrong with appearing in CFs or singing for the soundtracks (if the person has the talent to do that)? how does doing all that degrades the actors or makes them less talented?

      • jojo

        The thing is American culture values American dreams very high . It is just the culture. American puplic’s opinion think that these famous American artists set up examples for American dreams . The idea that you come to America to work hard and to become rich, has been established for ages .
        So, for artists who set up the examples for American public, they are rich enough to not branching out the other fields that you’re not good in it to make money. It is like a disgrace to your career .
        For example , Aston kusner, did CF for nikon . American public thought he was not good as an actor in his field because he needed money from the CF
        that is just American culture .

        • lay

          that’s really a sad way of judging one’s capability, cos IMO, some of those American actors who are paid millions for a movie are not really that great or rather, there are actors who are paid less than them but who are so much more talented. what is more unfortunate, such way has became a culture.

          • Peter

            Tom Cruise and Bruce Willis play the same part in every film and they earn millions of dollars every day. Those fans sure do love them.

            Gotta love the fans.

          • jojo

            Well, in America, if you don’t act good , you got to have a good charisma to charm people in the screen. It’s great if you have both though.
            Even for president campaign, the one who wins the election often is the one who has both talent and charisma to charm people .
            So the ones you see get paid 20 millions dollar per movie, they might not great in acting, but they would have big charisma to draw Americans to go to theaters .
            For American actors, CF and ads would be a lazy way to earn money than acting hard to earn money (:

  • jojo

    I mean if the CF contract not paid over many, many million dollars, that CF would be a disgrace for famous American Artists to work on .

    • lay

      so, that’s the reason why those actors did the CFs? double-standard much?

  • nicole

    i don’t mind seeing idols in dramas and movies. as long as they can act, that is. i’m sick of seeing idols with no talent for acting everywhere. there are enough so-called actors and actresses around who only have pretty faces. we don’t need more pretty faces. we need talent. however, this happens in the music world, so i guess i can’t say much.

  • boom

    I don’t see anything wrong with idols getting acting gigs. And honestly, most Korean actors I’ve seen…were not fantastically amazing to the point that I will say that idols do not deserve to work with them really; for the most part I don’t even see the difference — I think the only time I got so disgusted with an idol crossing over to acting was Hyunjoong’s Hanazawa Rui portrayal, but I did see an improvement on his follow-up drama so. And anyway, the biggest reason why I get enamored on watching Kdramas is the fact that their production value and overall visual appeal is well, really good. Plot and actors? Maybe I’ll stick to Doramas. Strictly considering the actors…lol I might stick to the dramas we have here in my country then.

    I don’t get why some ppl above were using America as an example, tbh. It’s so different.

    Idols are fine with me, since with Kdramas, I just get attracted to their visuals and OSTs. Kinda given up on the actors quite a long time ago. And the plot too so I don’t care.

    • lay

      i agree that generally Japanese Doramas plotline are much better and have varieties. but we do get Korean dramas with good plotline which break away from what’s commonly dished out in Korean dramas. OST is another thing that makes me love both Korean and Japanese dramas … that’s why it irritates me to watch dramas produced in my country cos they always used (i believe most of the time, without consent) music of others.

      Korea has a lot of amazing professional actors and i think one would encounter them if one follows Korea’s film industry. but then, even in dramas there are a lot of good actors especially those of an older generation.

  • kpopboi

    Taecyeon on tv.

    kill it with fire.

  • SG Wanna Be fan

    First off Korea has idols and singers. Idols do everything but are not amazing at one thing. They have par singing, basic acting skills, but most important they have charm/great looks. But honestly I prefer movies with actors not idols. Usually amazing roles won’t go to idols. I’m talking about the Korean movies that win awards and such. I started off liking idol groups but have now matured to like singing groups/underated musicians. The thing is in some idol groups there may be one member who actually has amazing talent and can stand on there own but we don’t get to see it cause they are overlooked based on there looks as if thats enough.

  • Chris

    You have to compare apples with apples, and oranges with oranges.

    The typical Korean drama is roughly the equivalent of an American soap opera (like “Days of Our Lives”). Nobody expects top-notch caliber acting from “Days of Our Lives”, because soap operas aren’t the venue for great acting; rather, it’s mainly for pretty people in unrealistic melodramas.

    To criticize Korean dramas for not living up to HBO standards is dumb.

    Korea is not as a big a market as the US, which is why there are not as many tiers of TV. For example, in America, you’d have the lowest tier (in terms of artistry), which would be reality TV and soap operas. Then you’d move up to the network and cable sitcoms. At the very top, you’d have HBO.

    In Korea, due to the smaller market, you have a lot of the lowest tier programs. Then you have some middle tier ones. But there’s no Korean equivalent of cinema-quality TV, probably because it’d be ridiculously expensive and even if every single Korean paid to watch it, it would barely break even.

  • 88Scatter

    Not to mention dramas these days are becoming considerably shorter by the number of episodes – while having them too long would eventually bore out the viewers (as it did to me in some case), having them too short really kind of disappoints me – the endings are always seemingly too rushed.

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