'Reply 1988' earns buckets of cash

Park Bo-gum in "Sunkist Cocktail" commercial

TV drama “Reply 1988,” which ended Saturday with a huge nationwide following, not only brought popularity to its cast but also proved its cash power in terms of commercials.

TV commercials slotted alongside the hit drama on cable network tvN cost close to 12.5 million won ($10,000), according to Joy New 24. The price is the most expensive for commercials on Korean television, which air before MBC’s variety show “Infinite Challenge” every Saturday evening.

Commercials for cable network programs have lower price rates than those on broadcast channels MBC, KBS and SBS. But “Reply 1988” became so popular that its commercials became as expensive as the prime shows on the broadcast networks.

Lee Dong-hwi in LG Uplus IoT commercial

Since last November when the first episode aired, the drama has raked in more than 17 billion won ($14 million) in commercials.

The drama also topped video-on-demand (VOD) rankings on CJ E&M, recording more than 5 billion won ($4.1 million) in sales.

With its original sound track album -- containing songs that topped online music charts for weeks -- on sale now, the drama is looking to bring in more than 22 billion won ($18.1 million) overall, a record for a cable network program.

Ryu Jun-yeol in Bean Paul commercial

The drama’s cast have become Triple-A advertising models. Lee Hyeri, who played the lead female character “Seong Deok-seon,” has earned almost 6 billion won ($4.9 million) modeling for more than 20 advertisements.

Ryu Jun-yeol, Park Bo-gum and Lee Dong-hwi, who portrayed high school student Seong’s friends, have all joined the “hot model” list. Together they have signed up for almost 70 advertisements.