Who is the highest paid actor?

Park Shin-yang

Ko Hyun-jung

Bae Yong-joon

By Park Si-soo

As is the case with ordinary salaried workers, TV stars tend to become tight-lipped when it comes to talking about income. But once a year ㅡ in September or October ㅡ the National Assembly offers a glimpse of what they try to keep secret during a parliamentary inspection of government and state-run companies.

The country's biggest broadcaster KBS is state-owned, which means how much money it has paid to individual entertainers is disclosed during this scrutiny. The correspondent data of two other terrestrial broadcasters, MBC and SBS, is made public through an inspection of the Korean Broadcasting Association and other state bodies in the industry.

According to data revealed in recent years, actor Bae Yong-joon is the nation's highest paid star. The 41-year-old was paid a whopping 250 million won ($217,000) in 2007 for appearing in each episode of epic drama "Taewangsasingi," whose English title is "The Legend." The drama was made up of 24 episodes, meaning he earned a staggering 5.7 billion won from it.

Park Shin-yang is the second highest paid actor per episode. The 45-year-old earned 170 million won in 2007 for appearing in each of the four extra episodes of SBS's "War of Money." He received 45 million won for each of the 16 original installments.

The radical increase provoked drama producers, costing him a three-year appearance ban on TV screens, imposed by an association of TV drama producers. He maintained a low-profile even after the ban was lifted and made a comeback in 2011 through SBS drama "Shine" in which he was paid 15 million won per episode.

Actor Jang Dong-gun and Song Seung-hun are known to receive more than 100 million won per episode.

Ko Hyun-jung is the highest paid actress. The 42-year-old received 55 million won per episode of SBS's Daemul or "President," aired in 2010. The previous record was the 48 million won that Choi Ji-woo received for the broadcaster's "Star's Lover," which aired in 2008.

The sum of 55 million won is three times higher than the non-binding limit of 15 million won set by Corea Drama Production Association (CODA) in 2007.

Thirteen actors and actresses are excluded from the financial ceiling for their "outstanding" contribution to the successful export of soap operas to Japan, said a CODA spokesman.

The 13 stars were Bae Yong-joon, Jang Dong-gun, Lee Byung-hun, Song Seung-hun, Rain, Jung Woo-sung, Kwon Sang-woo, Won Bin, So Ji-sub, Choi Ji-woo, Lee Young-ae, Song Hye-kyo and Park Yong-ha.

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