Kim Soo Hyun's latest drama "You Who Came From The Stars" is not only popular in Korea but has achieved viewer ratings as high as 25 percent in China.
His role as an alien in love helped propel the actor to the number one spot in the category of "Today's Actor" on China's largest search engine Baidu. As many as 740,000 fans follow the actor on Weibo microblogging site and members of his online Chinese fan sites have reached one million.
But it's not the first time that Kim Soo Hyun was a hit in China. His drama "The Moon Embracing The Sun" scored 46.1 percent of the viewer ratings in Korea before going on to become an equally impressive hit in China. Known there as "Hae Pum Dal," the historical drama won second place in the foreign TV series category at the Shanghai TV Festival.
Before his new drama, "You Who Came From The Stars," aired in Korea, the production team fielded requests from Chinese content providers.
"When the cast of the drama was announced, it drew attention from Chinese fans and a number of Chinese content providers," a representative of HB entertainment recently told the Korea Herald.
Three main Chinese content providers PPS, IQIYI and KanKan are now helping viewers catch up with the episodes shortly after they air in Korea. There have been almost two billion downloads of the first 10 episodes.
The actor's fans don't just like him because he has a pretty face and a soulful way of looking at his co-stars. They also respect his acting skills.
"He's one of the rare 20-something actors who retain outstanding acting skills," said Jang Tae Yoo, the producer of "You Who Came From The Stars."
According to his co-star Kim Chang Wan, Kim Soo Hyun is an actor people should pay attention to.
"Since we have worked together, I see that he is a very determined actor, very detailed and subtle," said Kim Chang Wan. "He's definitely an actor I will keep my eye on."
In the drama, Kim Soo Hyun plays an alien who landed on earth during the Joseon Era and quickly became disenchanted with human beings. After encountering their cruelty, he resolved to keep his distance until he could return to his home planet. However, 400 years later, he meets an actress who seems to be the reincarnation of his lost first human love. To become involved with humans is to become vulnerable and possibly never be able to leave Earth.
The actor who closely followed Kim Soo Hyun in popularity is Lee Min Ho, recently seen in the drama "The Heirs." Lee Min Ho was named the "2013 most influential Korean star in China" in a poll sponsored by the Chinese People's Daily.
