From Descendants of the Sun to Full House, these 5 K-dramas prove hallyu star Song Hye-kyo should be South Korea’s highest paid actress

Oct 16 , 2020

Song Hye-kyo is so beloved she can sell almost anything to her fans – whether it’s a K-drama or a brand of clothing or make-up. Photo: Chaumet

K-drama news

Jun Ji-hyun has Song Hye-kyo beat, earning US$84,000 per episode against Song’s US$42,000, but Song’s award-winning ‘aegyo’ acting opposite Park Bo-gum, Song Joong-ki and Rain in popular TV series Encounter, Autumn in My Heart and That Winter, The Wind Blows definitely deserves more

It really does seem like whatever Song Hye-kyo touches turns to gold. Or, to put it another way, becomes a mega-hit. Regarded as one of South Korea’s most beautiful women, as well as one of its highest paid actresses, Song receives an estimated US$42,000 per television episode – her magic touch has the ability to cross borders, draw millions of eyeballs to her dramas, and cause products to sell out.

Making the case for why she should perhaps be Korea’s top-paid actress rather than its fourth, we look back at her most acclaimed dramas, the awards she won for them, and the significant contribution she’s made to the global success of K-drama.

Autumn in My Heart (2000)

Debuting as a teenager in 1996, Song has since been cast in multiple dramas and sitcoms, but her big break came with 2000 series Autumn in My Heart, in which she acted alongside Song Seung-heon and Won Bin.

The drama not only rated well – despite its tragic ending – but expanded the viewership of Korean series throughout Asia. It set the tone for future dramas that would later become a trend throughout Asia, and was re-made in the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia.

Consider it one of the pioneering dramas of the early Korean wave, a K-drama classic, and the project that would make Song a hallyu (Korean Wave) star. It’s no coincidence that Song received the popularity award at the KBS Drama Awards during that same year, and at the Baeksang Art Awards the year following.

Full House (2004)

Yet another classic, Full House, would signal the start of the romcom K-drama craze. The plot, which sees the lead couple in a contract marriage but eventually falling in love, would become a common scenario used in future dramas.

Song, who starred opposite K-pop idol Rain, also swept the board when it came to awards that year: the Popularity Award, Best Couple, and Top Excellence Award were all bagged by Song at the KBS Drama Awards. Her cute acting – better known in Korean as aegyo – was so infectious, it was hard not to fall for her charms.

A massive success, Full House eventually aired in 15 countries outside Korea, and was remade in at least seven. It catapulted Song to even greater fame – so much so that by the time the project ended, she had decided to take a break and rest.

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