Kim Soo Hyun is considering a new role that fuses sci-fi with saeguk and if he takes it, may succeed in helping to create a new type of fusion drama.
What exactly is a fusion drama? You may have seen one and not known it. A fusion drama fuses or combines elements of different kinds of kdramas. For example, although a saeguk drama may take place in a historical setting as was the case in Kim Soo Hyun's previous hit drama, "The Moon Embracing The Sun" and the drama "Sungkyunkwan Scandal," neither of these dramas were about actual historical figures or events. Examples of saeguks inspired by a real people are "Queen Seon Duk" and "Jang Ok Jung."
Viewers may love the costumes and settings of historical dramas, but not care for the history lesson, so fusion saeguks deliver an enjoyable alternative.
For fantasy lovers, there's the fantasy saeguk. Even if a drama is set in the past it may feature fantasy elements, as was the case with the mythical creatures in "Gu Family Book" or the ghost in "Arang and the Magistrate." Or they may be set in the past and feature time-travel, which happened with the time-traveling prince in "Rooftop Prince," the time-traveling doctor in "Faith: The Great Doctor" and the time-traveling boyfriend in "Queen Inhyun's Man."
The drama Kim Soo Hyun is now reviewing, "Man From The Stars" will add aliens to the mix.
The drama is about an alien, Do Min Jun, who arrived on earth in a UFO during the Joseon era and has been on earth ever since.
So, it's not unlike Kim Soo Hyun's role as a North Korean spy in the hit film "Secretly, Greatly," only this time he is an observer from another planet. After four centuries as an undercover human, the alien falls in love with a human woman, an actress named Chun Song Yi. Like Superman and other famous fictional aliens living on earth, Do Min Jun will have special abilities.
Nothing has been confirmed yet but his agency said that he received the synopsis and is reviewing the offer.
This could definitely provide a new twist on fusion, combining aliens and historical dramas. Park Ji Eun, the writer of the drama, "You Who Rolled In Unexpectedly" has written the script. The drama will premiere in December.
Meanwhile Kim Soo Hyun's film, "Secretly, Greatly," was such a box office hit that it is being shown throughout Asia and as part of an Asian Film Festival in New York.