There are actors who rise through the ranks to become pillars of the Korean entertainment industry. Some have been around for a while, like So Ji-sub, Gong Yoo, and Hyun-bin. And some have made a cultural impact within the last decade like Lee Min-ho, Song Joong-ki, and Lee Jong-suk. I could go on listing second gen pillars, but I’ll stop at one last name: Kim Soo-hyun.
He sparked public interest in 2011 with Dream High, and kept it going with The Moon Embracing The Sun the following year. His rise to stardom was steady, but he didn’t become a “pillar” until 2013’s My Love From Another Star. At this point, Kim Soo-hyun is practically a household name among drama lovers. That’s why we’re frothing at the mouth over his latest drama It’s Okay To Not Be Okay.
In his first starring role since leaving the military, Kim Soo-hyun will play Moon Kang-tae, an employee at a psychiatric hospital. Orphaned and struggling to provide for his autistic brother, Kang-tae is even-tempered and empathetic, but doesn’t believe in love.
Go Moon-young (played by Seo Ye-ji) is a patient at the same hospital. She’s a popular children’s book author who specializes in fairytales, but battles antisocial personality disorder . Intelligent and privileged, Moon-young knows nothing about love.
The drama will follow both characters on a healing journey where they learn things they never imagined.
It’s set to air on tvN and Netflix (U.S.) on June 20th. That’s tomorrow people!! (Eastern Standard Time) I’m so excited! It’s Okay To Not Be Okay sounds like a mix of Kill Me, Heal Me, It’s Okay, That’s Love, and Hyde Jekyll, Me. Maybe that’s why Park Shin-woo is directing it. He directed Hyde Jekyll, Me, a drama where the main character (played by Hyun-bin) suffered from dissociative identity disorder. I binged it over the course of a weekend the way I binge Korean fried chicken. Looking back on the drama, it painted the disorder in a cartoonish light, but as a society that’s become more socially aware I don’t think that’ll happen again. Plus Park Shin-woo also directed Encounter, one of my favorite dramas of 2018/2019. I’m looking forward to more sweeping shots and understated scenes.
Most of all, I’m looking forward to Kim Soo-hyun’s performance. I can’t believe it’s been five years since The Producers. He does comedy well (verdict’s still out on the action genre), but I love him in a good romance. He emotes so beautifully.
I don’t know much about Seo Ye-ji, but she’s stunning. Her career has taken off in the past couple of years, because of dramas like Save Me and Lawless Lawyer. I haven’t seen either, but I heard they were good. My only hope is that she and Kim Soo-hyun have chemistry.
But can you have chemistry with someone who looks like your brother? People have been pointing out the resemblance and now I can’t unsee it. What do you guys think? (V – Wow, yes. They are like when Brad Pitt dated Gwyneth paltrow)
If not brother and sister, they could be cousins. I’m hoping they don’t realize it. I don’t want their resemblance to lead to a same-side-of-two-magnets situation, where they repel instead of attract. Although, scientifically people tend to be attracted to those who have similar features (yuuup, that makes me uncomfortable too). But I’m optimistic about It’s Okay To Not Be Okay. There are a lot of talented people attached.
With one pillar’s comeback drama coming to an end (aka The King: Eternal Monarch), it’s time for our Saturday’s and Sunday’s to be consumed by another.
The series is very good and do they ever have chemistry. Wow.