How Kim Soo-hyun, K-drama star of It's Okay to Not Be Okay, started a chicken and beer craze in China – meet the CF king

Jul 13 , 2020

Kim Soo-hyun plays a carer in a psychiatric hospital in Netflix’s romantic K-drama It's Okay to Not Be Okay. Photo: TVING Gallery

A Baeksang best actor-winner before 30 and a certified ace in advertising, or what’s known as a CF (or commercial film) king, what else is there do know about Kim Soo-hyun? Read on to find out how he’s achieved success early in his career and what fans can look forward to in his post-military service drama, It's Okay to Not Be Okay . There’s definitely more than meets Kim’s puppy eyes.

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Breakout star turned best actor

In 2011, newcomer Kim joined the star-studded cast of K-pop idols in teenage musical drama, Dream High. Kim’s role as a country bumpkin who gives up his dreams of owning a farm to pursue his first love caught the hearts of viewers and gained him a steady fan base.

In 2012, Kim took on the lead role in period drama Moon Embracing the Sun, which won him his first-ever major acting award. Despite having debuted only five years ago, then 24-year-old Kim was named 2012’s TV actor of the year at the Baeksang Arts Awards, besting industry veterans.

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All hail the CF king

In 2014, Kim made waves yet again in fantasy romcom My Love From the Stars, starring opposite top actress Jun Ji-hyun. The show was a trendsetter, sparking global fads from fashion to food, such as the “chimaek” or chicken and beer craze. According to Korea.net, fans of the drama waited in line outside chicken and beer restaurants in Shanghai and Beijing for up to three hours for their chance to emulate the show’s lovebirds.

Local media Dong-A Ilbo also reported that in that year, Kim gained more than 3.7 million followers on Weibo, making him the definitive Korean star of the 2000s in China. “CF king” Kim also broke his own record of appearing in 15 commercials at the same time. Allkpop reported that in 2014 alone, following his My Love From the Stars fame, Kim was offered a whopping 35 advertising proposals.

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The pretty boy is back

After completing his military service in 2019, Kim slowly eased back into the small screen, making surprise cameos in the dramas Hotel del Luna and Crash Landing on You . His comeback drama, tvN and Netflix’s It’s OK to Not Be OK, finally premiered last June.

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A romance drama on healing, Kim plays Moon Gang-tae, a carer in a psychiatric hospital. He stars opposite Seo Ye-ji as Ko Moon-young, an antisocial children’s book author who grows obsessed with Gang-tae. “I can’t stop wanting you,” she tells him boldly, “because you’re so pretty.” Fans can definitely relate.

Six episodes into the drama, viewers of the show await the romantic road Gang-tae and Moon-young will traverse to find emotional and mental healing through each other. “The character Moon Gang-tae has been hurt a lot, and I wanted to resonate with people by conveying his pain,” Kim is quoted saying to Soompi. “I’m going to do a good job of explaining his healing process.”

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Fame and celebrity

The breakout star of era-defining hit dramas Dream High, Moon Embracing the Sun and My Love from the Star, a new mature Kim Soo-hyun has emerged post-military service, setting hearts aflutter first in Crash Landing on You and now in psychological romcom It's Okay to Not Be Okay