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| Actors Lee Sang-woo, left and Kim So-yeon, co-stars in the 2016 drama "Happy Home" will tie the knot June 9 in Seoul. / Korea Times file |
Romantic chemistry endures in Korean stars' private lives
By Kim Ji-soo
When stars strike chemistry on screen, there is invariably a smoother workflow and the viewer experience is enhanced. And then questions spring whether that chemistry will spill over to real life.
In a departure from the past, stars, actors particularly, are increasingly finding soul mates in their on-screen partners. Most recently,hallyu star Lee Dong-gun and actress Cho Youn-hee, two protagonists of the 54-episode weekend drama "The Gentlemen of Wolgyesu Tailor Shop" said they tied the knot legally and were expecting a child. Lee debuted as a singer but successfully transitioned into acting, appearing in the 2004 television drama "Sweet 18." Cho debuted in 2002 through a drama called "Orange."
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| Actor s Lee Dong-gun, left, and Cho Youn-hee have legally finalized their marriage. / Korea Times file |
This month, on May 25, actors Joo Sang-wook and Cha Ye-ryun will also tie the knot. They met while filming the 50-episode "Glamorous Temptation" (2015), an MBC television drama. Besides the common pursuit of acting, Cha and Joo are known as golf aficionados. Joo is currently starring in a reality entertainment program on tvN titled "Forests on the Weekends." Joo debuted in 1997 and Cha in 2005.
Then there is Kim So-yeon and Lee Sang-woo. The two also played a couple fighting against the odds for love in "Happy Home." The 2016 drama featured 51 episodes and aired from February through August that year. They have set their wedding date for June 9. The two, both shy, reportedly started to have romantic feelings toward each other while filming the drama, but began dating after the episodes concluded. Kim debuted in 1994 through "Dinosaur Club" while Lee's first small-screen work was in 2005 "18 vs. 29."
Top actress Koo Hye-sun, known for numerous works including the hit television remake "Boys Over Flowers" (2009) married with Ahn Jae-hyun. Koo and Ahn met while filming the TV drama "Blood" in 2015. The drama did not enjoy a rating surge, but the two blossomed into romance and wed in July. They recently showed what their marriage was like through a reality program "The Lovebirds: Year 1" on the cable channel tvN.
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| Actors Ki Tae-young, left, and Eugene pose with their daughter, Ro-hee, in this file photo. / Korea Times file |
Eugene, a former member of the K-pop girl group S.E.S, met her husband Ki Tae-young on the set of a 2009 drama on MBC. Later, the two married, and now the couple and their daughter appear on KBS's reality show.
Celebrity couples are more common now, as younger generation of celebrities tend to proudly go public with their relationships. "People are likely to dig deeper if celebrities deny their relationship, and I think the younger generation of Korean stars understand this. It is hard to keep things hidden with social media," said Kwak Keum-joo, professor of psychology at Seoul National University said. The upside to marrying someone within the industry is that there is more understanding about the toils of the job. "Be it any job, if people are working together on a project for a common goal, or if that task or situation is challenging, the likelihood is that there may well be a strong exchange of feelings," said Kwak, "which can result in either fights or love, depending on the environment."
In the past, top actors often married influential figures or "influencers" such as politicians or business tycoons. Top actresses such as Ko Hyun-jung was formerly married to Chung Yong-jin, vice chairman of Shinsegae Group. While the prowess of hallyu or the popularity of Korean popular content including music and dramas may be affected by the tension over the deployment of THAAD, Korean stars are popular "infleuncers" in Asia.
"I think there is a certain plus factor in Korean society now when two stars unite in matrimony especially where people will continue to remember them. One's popularity may decline relative to their spouses, but in people's minds, they are etched in memory as a celebrity couple," said Kwak.
There is an array of stars dating currently, those who met while shooting movies, dramas and music videos, raising the possibility of more celebrity nuptials or admissions.
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