INTERVIEW Lee Sang-yoon says he knew 'One the Woman' would be a success Actor Lee Sang-yoon played the character of Han Seung-wook in the SBS comedy series “One the Woman.” Courtesy of JWide CompanyBy Lee Gyu-leeWhen the SBS comedy series “One the Woman” was announced as a follow up to “The Penthouse: War in Life 3” in September, the creator and cast felt immense pressure because its predecessor was so popular with an almost 20 percent viewership rating.“One the Woman” aired its first episode with a relatively humble start ― it's viewership was in the single digits. But it didn't take long for the new series to prove itself as catchy and hilarious. Viewer ratings rose to double-digit figures from the third episode and the show eventually ended its 16-part run Saturday with its highest rating of 17.9 percent.Actor Lee Sang-yoon, who co-led the series with Lee Ha-nee, said that he was confident of the series' success from the beginning. “Viewer ratings are unpredictable, so I didn't expect that ours would be so high. But I was certain that the viewers would enjoy it very much,” the actor said duriNov 9, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
Actor denies allegations of wrongful behavior on set Actor Lee Ji-hoon / Courtesy of G-Tree CreativeBumpy road ahead for IHQ's new drama, 'Sponsor,' as lead actor, some staff mired in disputeBy Kwak Yeon-sooIHQ's upcoming series, “Sponsor,” has been mired in a controversy over allegations of wrongful behavior by actor Lee Ji-hoon during production just weeks before the drama's premiere on Nov. 29. Lee, who is about to play his first lead role in the drama, has been at odds with some staff over a recent reshuffle.The actor has denied the allegations that he influenced the production house to replace several staff, including the screenwriter, with new ones. In a statement uploaded on his Instagram account, he denied allegations that he had committed “gapjil,” claiming he's not influential enough to replace the staff. “Gapjil” is a Korean word referring to the abuse of power by people in authority against those they outrank.In response to the rumors, Lee wrote, “I am shocked and my heart is broken. I don't have enough guts to exercise any sort of power to remove or appoint anyone.”The allegaNov 9, 2021By Kwak Yeon-soo
SBS series 'Let Me Be Your Knight' to offer glimpse into K-pop stars' lives The cast members of “Let Me Be Your Knight,” from left: JR, Jang Dong-joo, Jung In-sun, Lee Jun-young, Yoon Ji-sung, and Kim Dong-hyun, pose for pictures during an online press conference for the series, Thursday. Courtesy of SBSBy Lee Gyu-leeSBS's upcoming TV series “Let Me Be Your Knight” will put the limelight on the struggles and personal lives of K-pop stars off the stage. Starring actors Lee Jun-young and Jung In-sun as the leads, the romantic comedy series revolves around a globally successful K-pop singer Tae-in (Lee), and a tour guide Yoon-joo (Jung).Tae-in is a musical genius and the leader of a popular K-pop quintet called Luna ― whose members are played by actor Jang Dong-joo and K-pop singers Yoon Ji-sung, JR of NU'EST, and Kim Dong-hyun of AB6IX. But he has a secret: he sleepwalks. One day, an incident leads Yoon-joo to move into the house, where Tae-in is living with the group members and becomes a live-in doctor to help cure his condition secretly.“The series started by imagining 'What would happen if I were to live with a K-pop star thatNov 6, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
Lee Hyun-wook and Jaehyun to star in 'Bungee Jumping of Their Own' remake series Actors Lee Hyun-wook, left, and Jeong Jae-hyun will star in the drama adaptation of the romance film, “Bungee Jumping of Their Own.” Courtesy of Management Air, Korea Times fileBy Lee Gyu-leeActors Lee Hyun-wook and Jeong Jae-hyun, who is better known as “Jaehyun” of K-pop boy group NCT, will be co-starring in the drama adaptation of the 2000 romance film, “Bungee Jumping of Their Own.” Lee's agency, Management Air, and Jeong's agency, SM Entertainment, confirmed that the actors have taken the lead roles in the upcoming series.Directed by Kim Dae-seung, who is known for directing the historical films, “The Magician” and “The Concubine,” the film follows college sweethearts In-woo (Lee Byung-Hun) and Tae-hee (Lee Eun-Ji), who fall in love at a first sight. Despite their promise of eternal love for each other, Tae-hee disappears out of the blue. Seventeen years later, In-woo meets one of the students he teaches, Hyeon-bin, who constantly reminds him of Tae-hee, and so he clings to the hope of finding her as his first love agaiNov 4, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
Ok Taec-yeon gives glimpse of his first period series 'Secret Royal Inspector & Joy' Actors Ok Taec-yeon, left, and Kim Hye?yoon pose for pictures during the online press conference of the series “Secret Royal Inspector & Joy,” Wednesday. Courtesy of tvN By Lee Gyu-leeActor Ok Taec-yeon, a member of K-pop boy group 2PM, stars in his first period series in his acting career with tvN's upcoming comedy-drama “Secret Royal Inspector & Joy.” “Since this is my first time taking a role in a period series, I was very nervous,” he expressed during the press conference of the series, held online Wednesday.Set in the Joseon era (1392-1910), the new series revolves around a free-spirited secret royal inspector Ra Yi-eon (Ok).Yi-eon has no ambition and is just getting by as a royal officer. One day, he is appointed as the secret agent, or “Amhaeng-eosa,” who are dispatched to travel around the country to perform undercover investigations into corrupt civil officials.Along the way, he teams up with an unorthodox woman Kim Joy (Kim Hye?yoon) to carry out his missiNov 4, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
Lee Sun-kyun teams up with star director for first Korean Apple TV+ original Actor Lee Sun-Kyun, left, and director Kim Jee-woon pose for pictures during the online press conference for the new Apple TV+ original series “Dr. Brain,” Wednesday. Courtesy of Apple TV+By Lee Gyu-leeActor Lee Sun-Kyun, who garnered international fame through the Oscar-winning film “Parasite,” has teamed up with star director Kim Jee-woon for the sci-fi series “Dr. Brain,” the first Korean original series for the Apple TV+ streaming service.The series is set to premiere with the service's launch in the country, Thursday. “While Korean content is getting more and more attention globally, it is a privilege for the series to be released through Apple TV+ and I hope we contribute to a further boom in Korean content,” the actor said during an online press conference for the series, Wednesday. Based on the popular webcomic of the same name by Hongjacga, the new series revolves around a genius neuroscientist Sewon (Lee) who develops a technology that will allow access to the unconsciousness and buried memories in the brain.After losing his fNov 4, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
INTERVIEW 'Hospital Playlist' director shares how his rule-breaking experiment succeeded Director Shin Won-ho recently finished the second season of his latest series, “Hospital Playlist.” Courtesy of tvN By Lee Gyu-leeIt has been a long-established arrangement for most Korean TV dramas, if not all, to air two episodes on consecutive days per week and to run for a single season. However, star director Shin Won-ho has broken that practice. “Hospital Playlist,” his latest series, aired only one episode each weekend, and continued over two seasons ― a decision he made even before production began.Unveiling one episode per week was initially seen as high risk for Shin, as well as tvN, in a fast-changing digital era when viewers are increasingly impatient about TV series and anxious to know what happens in the next episodes. Over-the-top service providers have tried to appeal to viewers' changing needs by unveiling all of the episodes of a series upon its release. Shin's confidence-driven experiment turned out to be a success.The feel-good drama has garneredNov 3, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
Drama fans irked by excessive product placement A scene from "Jirisan" / Korea Times fileBy Yoon Ja-youngWith production costs soaring each year, the promotion of products through TV shows, or product placement has become ever more common. However, sometimes product placement goes too far and viewers end up complaining that they cannot concentrate on the show because of the distraction.The most recent show that is drawing criticism for this matter is tvN's mystery series “Jirisan.” It premiered amid high expectations, as hallyu star Jun Ji-hyun took the lead role, backed by creative talents including star writer Kim Eun-hee ― known for hits like “Kingdom” and “Signal” ― and director Lee Eung-bok ― who directed the globally popular, “Mr. Sunshine” and “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God.”Viewers were captivated by the overwhelmingly impressive scenery of Jirisan National Park, with the story evolving around forest rangers there, but some complained that they “can't figure out if it is a drama or a commercial for outdoor clothing.” Popular outdoor clothing brandNov 2, 2021By Yoon Ja-young
Comedy series 'One the Woman' hits its highest viewership rating The comedy series, “One the Woman,” received a 16.9 percent viewership rating with Saturday's episode. Courtesy of SBSBy Lee Gyu-leeThe SBS comedy series “One the Woman,” starring Lee Ha-nee and Lee Sang-yoon, has reached its highest viewership rating with its latest episode on Saturday. The 14th episode scored a 16.9 percent viewership rating nationwide and 17.7 percent in the Seoul metropolitan area. The 16-part series kicked off on Sept. 17 with an 8.2 percent rating, and soon saw a jump in its rating to over 12 percent by the third episode.The series has been garnering popularity with its unpredictable plot twists and Lee's compelling performance as the comical, irresistible main character of the series.Directed by Choi Young-hoon, who previously led the romantic comedy shows "Good Casting" and "Second to Last Love," “One the Woman” follows the aggressive, corrupt prosecutor Cho Yeon-joo, who is a lookalike of the wealthy heiress, Kang Mi-na. Yeon-joo gets into a car accident, which causes her to lose her memory, and wakes up to a different lifOct 31, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
Lee Young-ae returns to small screen with quirky comedy series 'Inspector Koo' Actress Lee Young-ae pose for pictures during an online media conference for the new crime comedy series, “Inspector Koo,” Friday. Courtesy of JTBCBy Lee Gyu-leeActress Lee Young-ae has returned to the small screen with JTBC's new crime comedy series, “Inspector Koo,” about four years since the period romance series, “Saimdang, Memoir of Colors,” in 2017. Directed by Lee Jeong-heum, who led the mystery series, “Nobody Knows,” the thriller series revolves around a former cop, Koo Kyung-yi (Lee).One day, she is offered a missing person's case to work on as an insurance investigator. As she digs into the case, she suspects that there's more to it. Using her intelligence and instinct as a cop, she tries to find out the truth behind the crimes, which were perfectly staged by a serial killer. It is written by newcomer Seong Choy.The series took off Saturday with a 2.6-percent viewership rating.Lee said that she decided to take the lead in the series because she was interested in its peculiar story. “I chose this series because it was odOct 31, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
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