In 2013 actor Kwon Sang Woo saw both drama success and failure. He succeeded with the role of Ha Ryu, a man wasting his life on revenge in the 2013 manga adaptation "Queen of Ambition." The drama was one of last year's hottest, with the final episode drawing more than 25 percent of the viewers.
"I don't know how far I've come as an actor," he said of the drama's success. "I don't think it will be easy for another drama of mine to receive over 25 percent. I don't think the viewers liked Kwon Sang Woo the actor as much as they liked the drama."
The ratings for his next drama may have led him to believe that was true. His next role was playing genius surgeon Park Tae Shin in the medical drama "Medical Top Team.
The drama had a lot of promise as it was directed by the director of "The Moon Embracing The Sun" and written by the writer of "Brain." But the story failed to catch the public's interest. The ratings averaged around 5 percent and it languished in third place.
But no one blamed Kwon Sang Woo for the failure of the drama. Critics cited the poor character development and inconsistent themes in "Medical Top Team." It was also in competition with two popular dramas, "The Heirs" and "Secrets."
Now the actor has been cast in another drama. His new melodrama has the intriguing title of "Seduction." It's the story of a man who gets seduced slowly and what initially seduces him is the idea of a better life.
Kwon Sang Woo plays Cha Suk Hoon, a naïve man from a rural village in Gangwon Province. Despite the fact that his family is poor and struggling, he gets into the nation's best college. But along his way to a better life he acquires a lot of debt. He marries but tries to hide his debt from his family.
When the debt proves inescapable, a woman approaches him and offers him a shady financial deal. She will absolve his financial debt if she can own his body.
Should Cha Suk Won accept the deal and save his family or confess his debt and deal with the logical negative results? The drama has been described as a look into the unpredictable yet true nature of love.
Yoon Eun Hye has been offered the role of Kwon Sang Woo's wife. Actress Lee Mi Yeon is also considering the offer to co-star in this drama, which does not yet have an exact airdate but could follow "Doctor Stranger."
Having had a runaway success and a drama failure in the same year, there is no predicting what will happen with Kwon Sang Woo's next production.