When Lee Byung Hun, star of "Red 2" and "GI Joe: Retaliation" and Lee Min Jung, star of "All About My Romance," caught the bouquet at the wedding of actor Shin Hyeon Joon, people wanted to know when they would wed. When asked if they would marry within six months as is expected of those catching the bouquet, they declined to set a date, citing busy schedules. But at least they admitted they were dating. The two went public about their relationship a year ago.
Sometimes you don't find out that stars are dating until shortly before they break up or even after they split up. Actress Choi Ji Woo kept her relationship with Lee Jin Wook a secret for two years. They met while acting in the drama "Air City." Choi Ji Woo, who appeared in "Winter Sonata" and "Stairway to Heaven," and Lee Jin Wook, who starred in "Nine: Nine Time Travels," broke up shortly after making their relationship public.
On occasion a kdrama couple is forced to go public because the press photographs them together, as they did earlier this year with Jo In Sung, star of "That Winter The Wind Blows" and Kim Min Hee, who appeared in the film, "Very Ordinary Couple."
But even pictures may not force a couple own up to a relationship. When 2PM's Taecyeon, star of "Dream High" was recently photographed with Girls Generation's Jessica, he denied they were dating. When IU, star of "You're The Best Lee Soon Shin" was called out on her relationship with Super Junior's Eunhyuk, she said the rumors were false. No one knows for sure what's true about these relationships except maybe the people involved. And that's the way it should be.
Why are stars so guarded about their relationships? There are a few reasons.
The first reason is privacy. It's hard enough to develop a relationship with another person if the whole world is not watching your every move. If the public suspects you are a couple, they will scrutinize and possibly criticize everything you do together.
Being a couple can be hard work for any two people but the punishing schedules that actors and entertainers have make it even more likely a relationship will fail. That's what happened with Song Hye Kyo and Hyun Bin who starred together in "Worlds Within." They dated for a couple of years but found that being in the same business did not help their relationship. So, it's risky to even date a fellow actor. And if it doesn't work out, fans may criticize you for not trying hard enough.
Sometimes actors and actresses fall in love while playing a couple but then find they are not actually those people. Not sure if that is what happened with Lee Min Ho and Park Min Young when they played lovers in "City Hunter" but they didn't date for long after.
Also, actors and entertainers may worry about the negative reactions their girlfriend or boyfriend may suffer from obsessed saesang fans. Younger actresses may worry that dating ruins their innocent image.
Whatever the reason, stars are entitled to their privacy. As much as fans may be curious to learn more about kdrama couples, especially those that result from being a couple in a kdrama, the actors should be able to decide when to reveal details about their relationship.
