It is quite difficult to emphasize the importance of Korean drama's supporting cast, most especially when they are the ones that usually enliven a drama and makes a difference from a good drama and an extraordinary one. And it takes an extra special talent to be able to bring their characters to life.
The question now is, why do the leads actors get all the glory? Of course, they're all good looking, and yes they do a great job as leads. But we often take for granted the unnoticed heroes of Korean dramas, the coworkers, secretaries, and evil ministers who make the story go round and round. And without them, you would only witness two hot, good looking leads staring at each other for 16 episodes or more.
If you're a Korean drama expert, you'll instantly realize that it's a good one, once you recognize the same actors popping up again and again to play these vital roles. You may even say "Oh look! It's him again!"
Here are the lists of those actors who play a vital role in Korean dramas that you're always familiar with:
1. Sung Dong-Il
Sung Dong-Il is a highly acclaimed actor who has starred in plenty of popular Korean dramas as well as films. With his amazing and natural acting skills, he can pull off a character without a sweat, regardless of what character he is assigned to portray. You will see him frequently play a character of a grumpy, loud dad or father-figure who is also a great big softie underneath all that strong personality. And when he starts to cry, we too become cry-babies!
2. Chun Ho Jin
Chun Ho Jin is a well-known veteran actor that debuted way back in 1986 through the film "Street of Desire". He became famous after he won Best New Actor at the 28th Baeksang Arts Awards for his role in the 1990 television drama "Love on a Jujube Tree." He also did a lot of good projects for the years he has spent in the industry. He is usually seen portraying roles of an evil politician who's really hard to dispose of even harder to kill than a cockroach. He's so good at being a villain that its extra special when he portrays a good guy role.
3. Kim Won Hae
Kim Won Hae is indeed famous in portraying the supporting role in most known Korean movies and dramas. He may not be the lead character, but for sure he's going to take the spotlight with his amazing acting skills. Most of us are familiar with Kim Won Hae as the supporting actor that we couldn't resist but love. His acting ability made us laugh and cry at the same time!
3. Kang Ki Young
Yes, that's him! Even if you aren't familiar with his name, you are still familiar with his face. He's truly one of the most famous supporting actors of all time. You would even see him appear in dramas namely, While You Were Sleeping, I'm Not A Robot, Weighlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo, W, Oh My Ghost, and more recently in What's Wrong With Secretary Kim and My Secret Terrius. And the list just goes on!
5. Kim Sang Ho
Kim Sang Ho is easily recognized with his signature bald head and side curls. He was born on July 24, 1970, and started his career in the industry through theater in 1996 before he started starring in films and dramas. He usually plays the underdog character in dramas and here are his most recent projects "Wonderful Days" (2014), "Doctor Stranger" (2014) and "D-Day" (2015), as well as the film "Proof of Innocence" (2016).
