The Effects Of Idol Actors; Drama Ratings, Health Awareness And The Support Of The Fans

Tags: idols; Actor-Dol; singer-actor

BY Staff Reporter Oct 22, 2012 04:47 PM EDT

Many idols have successfully crossed over from the world of music to the world of TV and movies.

There are many idols who have successfully made their way into TV and movies giving them the title of an actor-dol. Idols like Goo Hara, Kim Hyun Joong and more have made their marks on the term actor-dol. Many of these idols already have crazy schedules, between comebacks, variety shows and fan signings they have no time to themselves and then some of them decide to add on the job of filming for a drama or movie. An idol being in a drama or a movie affects everything around it, it affects ratings, fans and most importantly, it affects the idols.

Victoria of F(x) and Nichkhun of 2PM filmed the show "We Got Married" while both promoting new comebacks and Victoria also had to film a variety show overseas called "F(x) Koala". Chansung of 2PM is currently deciding whether or not to film a new drama called "Secret Lovers" while also preparing for 2PM's Japanese and Korean comebacks set for later this year. Soyeon of T-ara starred in the drama "Haeundae Lovers" while also doing promotions for T-ara's "Sexy Love". Many fans say that this is too much for the idols and that they may get tired and sick, which is what happens to many idols including Brown Eyed Girl's Narsha. Between the stress of being and idol and being an actor it can wear a person down but these idols always give 110%.

Ratings are significantly higher when an idol is put in a drama as well. Many dramas that incorporate idols are usually big hits. The drama "Unexpected You" had a peak rating of 52% on their final episode with just a picture of Suzy for about 3 seconds in one scene. The KBS 2TV drama "Dream High" was a drama made up of only idols (with the exception of Kim Soo Hyun) and is still one of the most watched dramas. "My Daughter Seo Young" broke the 30% record and got 31.5% on their 8th episode that aired on October 7th.

Fans love their idols, they love them when they sing and dance but nothing is better than getting to watch them once (maybe even twice) a week on TV. Many fans even support the non-idol actors. Kim Soo Hyun and Lee Hyun Woo are perfect examples of this. Kim Soo Hyun was the only non-idol main character in the KBS 2TV drama "Dream High" starring as Song Sam Dong, Hye Mi (Suzy)'s love interest, who regardless of a hearing problem became a world known Grammy award winning singer. Lee Hyun Woo stars in "To The Beautiful" you as Goo Jae Hee (Sulli)'s best friend, Cha Eun Gyul. He even went over sees to Malaysia to promote the drama, which had a great turn out.

There are also many cases where these actor-dols make their group famous due to their work in dramas. Good examples of this are After School's UEE, FT Island's Hong Ki and Miss A's Suzy. After School's UEE and FT Island's Hong Ki are most known for their role's in the drama "You Are Beautiful" (Which also starred Jang Geun Seuk and Park Shin Hye) helped not only make UEE and Hong Ki famous but it also helped their groups, as a result of their fame their group also became famous. Miss A's Suzy has been in movies and dramas but what made her famous were her roles in "Dream High" starring along-side members of 2 of the most known idol groups 2PM and T-ara and IU ("the nation's little sister") and "Architecture 101" (Which also starred Han Ga In). Through that Suzy was offered more acting roles and also helped her and her group Miss A rise up in fans and popularity.

Their companies, their talents and their beauty make it possible for them to be singers and actors but the people who help get them to the top and keep them there for as long as possible? Their fans. Whether it's Korean fans or international ones, we support them all the same. Korean fans go to their music shows, their performances and watch whatever they appear in whether its a drama or a variety show every time they can. International fans stay up late to watch live streams of their favorite idols music show and wait patiently for subs for the drama that their favorite idol is in (along with waiting for them to come to their country). These fans do everything and anything to make sure that their favorite group is at the top. Hottests (2PM fans) and Say As (Miss A fans) watched "Human Casino" for the 'kiss scene' between Wooyoung and Suzy and B2UTIES (Beast fans) watched every episode of "My Princess" to see Ki Kwang even though he didn't have one of the lead roles in the drama. These fans dedicate time (and money) to show their idols how much they support them and how much they care about them. These fans are one of the things that keep not just actor-dols going, but they keep all idols going.