There are growing worries over Lee Min Ho's career path as one of South Korea's most prominent actors in the wake of his recent K-drama "When the Stars Gossip" performing poorly.

The recently debuted show has been drawing attention due to its ensemble cast — and the surprisingly low ratings.

Costing 50 billion won (around 34 million USD), "When the Stars Gossip" was promoted as a significant movie-level blockbuster that was presented to be a guaranteed hit thanks at least in part to Netflix, hitting the prime time spot at tvN.

Calling itself on the storyline, on the other hand, the series has seen trouble upping the viewership ratings, recording just 3.324 percent for its opening rating, one of the dramatizations with the lowest opening review rate at the end of the week in history as 2024 approaches.

By the second week, ratings had sunk beneath 3%, even with some episodes falling to an abysmal 2.237%.

However, as reported by KBiZoom, critics say the new character — a less affluent, playful role — has not been convincing, and viewers are not responding well to Lee Min Ho's attempts to revive an image similar to his previous which made him a star.

His acting was relatively mediocre relative to the rest of the cast, K-drama critics noted and said his chemistry with co-star Gong Hyo Jin was lacking compared to his past partners.

His good looks have always certainly been a staple in casting him in previous successes, but in this project, they were ineffective.

This series has also been criticized for absurd plot elements and over-emphasis on "bed scenes," causing some people to question, "Why did Lee Min Ho accept this script."

Lee Min Ho has long been in demand for commercials and talk shows, but his recent dramas have fallen short of expectations.

Although he has had massive success in the last decade of his career with his biggest work — "The Legend of the Blue Sea" — the following projects have not gained significant marks on his filmography.

Although The King: Eternal Monarch was moderately successful internationally on Netflix, the drama was a flop in Korea itself.

While his time in "Pachinko" was lauded, the spotlight never shone solely on him and did nothing to up his Asian profile.

However, experts say that Lee Min Ho's career may not be in danger. Otherwise, "When the Stars Gossip" is floundering at home but doing well away, possibly thanks to his popularity still lingering there.

From January 6th to 12th, Netflix's Global TOP 10 series rankings show that the show ranked eighth, amassing 2.4 million views and a total viewing time of 10.8 million hours.

According to FlixPatrol, the series has made it into the TOP 10 in 55 countries, such as Canada, Australia, Japan, India, and Saudi Arabia, achieving #8 on Netflix's global TV shows chart.

Analysts state that Lee Min Ho is successfully broadening his repertoire of acting skills and challenging different characters.

"The perception of a crisis may be overstated," entertainment analyst Kim Soo Yung said. "Maybe he's taking a breather to better himself not just chasing money."

Fans will be on the lookout for what Lee Min Ho still has in store amid these troubling times as an actor.