Hot on the heels of the he-said-they-said war of the words between Hyun Bin‘s agency and the production company of MBC‘s upcoming Kill Me Heal Me over whether or not Binnie was offered the role initially (I’ll explain it all below the jump in detail), today there is breaking casting consideration news that gets me all excited. Hyun Bin is reportedly planning to do a drama next year and the two dramas he’s been offered and is seriously considering are Kim Eun Sook‘s majority overseas shooting disaster zone drama Descendants of the Sun vs. the sageuk Unprecedented which was on MBC‘s schedule for this year with Cha Seung Won but ended up getting shelved. Both dramas are apparently SBS dramas for 2015 with Unprecedented now getting picked up by SBS after MBC passed on it. Fans of Binnie in Secret Garden will undoubtedly be thrilled that he’s considering reuniting with Kim Eun Sook in Descendants. For me? I’m just happy he’s planning a return to the small screen so I can bask in his dimples for a few months.
I find the Kill Me Heal Me casting kerfluffle more amusing than anything, and in the grander scheme of things harmless for both sides so I’ll go ahead and share the dickwaving that just went on between Hyun Bin’s agency and the production company Pan Entertainment behind the upcoming K-drama Kill Me Heal Me. It all started with a media outlet wrote that Hyun Bin was going to be the leading man. That led to the production company refuting that by saying it had contacted Hyun Bin to ask about his availability and that was it, and in fact Hyun Bin wasn’t in talks because the leading man character has been written as someone in his twenties. That majorly pissed off Hyun Bin’s agency who put out their own press release excoriating the production company for the inaccurate recitation of what happened.
Hyun Bin was given the first script when he was offered the role, followed by the production company later even sending the revised script months later to keep wooing him. In the end it was Hyun Bin who ultimately turned down the drama. Hyun Bin’s agency is upset that the production company is making it seem like Hyun Bin was never seriously in talks which would make his agency look like they were the ones behind the first report that he was doing the drama, i.e. putting out a preemptive strike so that Binnie could land the role, when in fact that was never the case. The production company then hit back again by being defensive about why Hyun Bin’s agency was making such a big deal out of it, the production company tried to downplay Binnie’s talks to do the drama after he ultimately declined so as to not negatively interfere with its casting of the male lead. If the world knows Hyun Bin declined then some actors may be reluctant to accept the role.
The production company then yelled at the media for writing about the casting of Hyun Bin in the first place before it was confirmed, thereby starting this whole mess since every casting process involves actors and actresses turning down roles before the casting is finalized. If such matters are written about and exposed to the public, it would add another messy layer to the casting. Both sides in this KMHM casting dust-up have valid points but this ultimately comes down to having conflicting agendas in protecting their own actor/project. For now it might indeed make some big name twenty-something K-actors hesitant to take on the 7-multiple personalities role. Unless it’s just ego talking, it’s no big deal to take on a role that another actor has previously passed on, and sometimes it turned out for the best and no one remembers the casting switch. Check out some famous alternate casting choices in recent memory.
Hyun Bin stepping in for Jang Hyuk in Secret Garden. See, even Binnie can step in for someone else!
Yoon Si Yoon as the last minute replacement for the injured Kim Jae Won in Me Too, Flower!
Lee Jun Ki confirmed Faith but had to bow out when he was shipped off to the army, Kang Ji Hwan took over but the project languished in development hell for a year, finally Lee Min Ho landed the role after the whole drama was rebooted with a different story.
Ji Sung turned down Iron Man (Blade Man) which finally convinced Lee Dong Wook to give it a shot.
Jang Geun Seok was the original Gu Jun Pyo in Boys Before Flowers but he wanted to play Ji Hoo sunbae instead but that role was already given to Kim Hyun Joong. So Jang Geun Seok declined and Lee Min Ho stepped in for his career big break.
Hyun Bin come back with Kim Eun Suk
Kim Soo Hyun come back with Jin Soo Wan…simple…now give an offer..
I am trying to imagine how JGS and LMH careers would shape up today had the former accepted Goo Jun Pyo role. JGS was the rising star back in 2008 while LMH was a total nobody and look where both stand today! Total 180 (well, JGS can still claim his Asia Prince status but in Korea he’s pretty inconsequential, unlike conquering-both-worlds LMH).
Don’t get me wrong, i used to be huge fan of JGS until his hobo antic took over :/
I adored him before he started looking like a drag queen.
Ditto…
Same here. At one point of time, he dressed up like Willy Wonka.
well JGS raised his fame with YAB and went wrong from there…. Either way he would be like this if he were in BOF and got big there. Doesn’t change how he thinks he is too good for everything and everyone else
@right “too good for everything and everyone else” you talk as if u know him in person lol
…….and that applies to Park shin hye aswell……except jks is a better actor than lmh and psh
A drag queen, willy wonka??? Jang Geun Suk is in no way near to what you were saying. He is not afraid to change his style, because he & his stylist know he is one of the very few celebrities who can pull it off. You can dress him up in almost anything, sport any hairstyle & he would manage to still look good on it!
lol the whole KMHM thing is amusing. but whatever, BINNIE BACK TO DRAMALAND YESSSSSSS
Hyun Bin in Descendants of the Sun is so obvious (and a great idea given the type of drama we have here). It’s him or KWB and we can’t deny than HB + KES is a winning combo. SBS will want just that.
Him or KWB? I don’t think KWB is a viable lead prospect for Descendants of the sun though
KWB doesn’t have the same star status yet but he saved Heirs from capsizing for many viewers. Once you’re part of KES’s ‘clan’ & you proved yourself, gratitude goes both ways. In the end, I’ll be okay with anyone of them being chosen for this show.
age wise, KWB isn’t qualified. And no matter how much ifans gut KWB saved Heirs… in Korea, it’s LMH that lead the drama and has become more popular than ever.
KWB is good but he hasn’t lead a drama yet… so it’s still behind LMH, more so with HB who is an A-lister
The ratings of Heirs were low & strangely, started rising when KWB’s character got more screen time & buzz… but of course, LMH fan girls will pretend it didn’t happen.
You’re underestimating the way Kim Woobin’s profile was raised after Heirs, and also the fact that his movie Friend 2 was a box office smash last year (while LMH has yet to do a single movie).
I saw way too many viewers who liked Young Do better in Heirs despite the presence of LMH, so while LMH is definitely a more established star, KWB is now a viable potential young leading man for tv and film and snapping at his heels. One more successful drama or movie will be all he needs to firmly establish himself as a star, and right now he’s getting a lot of offers even a year after Heirs.
Kim Woo Bin for Descendants of Sun? Don’t make us laugh. LOL. He is a typecast actor. Just know to play rebel character only with OK acting or watchable. At least i don’t feel want to throw stone..
i really like both options but a part of me feels they won’t want to risk KWB on such a huge production as the main lead YET.
Maybe 2nd lead?
I feel Binnie will definitely get the main lead
Its highly unlikely Binnie will do the Saguek with Cha Seung Won…..His last movie was also political saguek….
Hm. Wasn’t too fond of Secret Garden or Kim Eun-sook’s dramas in general. Maybe Hyun Bin could consider something else?
I can’t imagine not watching a HB project on the television, but, I would rather stab myself in the eyes with a piece of rice (OK, it wouldn’t cause a lot of damage, I admit.) than watch a KES script unravel before me.
The problem: her tendency to write really stupid male parts and his ability to make said male character more likeable/watchable than it merits. I’ll huff and puff and complain, then watch and huff and puff and complain while failing to resist his charm.
Don’t do it, HB!!!
I thought both male leads were likable & smart in OnAir.if we can have the same kind of melo-ish writing, that will be perfectly watchable.
This is so true. I hate KES’s men. Yet, if I start, I can’t stop watching and like them in a twisted way. Sigh. If he takes the KES role, I am watching it. I won’t want to, but I will. And I probably will like it. Yet, I feel so guilty!
ok so why can they gave such roles to the younger generation like Lee Min Ho 1993 or Lee Hyun Woo.. this guys need a break..seriously!
It’s a melo and the characters are supposed to have a lot of emotional baggage: The actors must be looking ≈30 yo. In the same vein, as much as I love LJS, he was too young to play a Doc in Dr Stranger. Actors too old for their parts in Heirs hopefully taught SBS a lesson about miscasting.
The main lead in KES’ drama is supposed to be a doctor working with MSF/DWB so I would cry foul if someone even remotely near KWB’s age is cast…
It’s Hyun Bin. Do we need anything more? I think not.
Hyun Bin in a drama – I am there… Even though he did a sageuk movie ready, I don’t mind if he does a sageuk drama – a good one anyways.
Well either one is fine. Decent script please!
What’s up with pan and hb’s team fighting? LOL
I’ve only watch hyun bin in secret garden and fell in love with him there so pls come back with kim eun sook. The story actually sounds good and there’s an actual storyline unlike heirs this time haha
Either way, I’m good, just so I can watch Binnie back on the small screen. What a year 2015 is shaping up to be, with Yoo Seung Ho back from the army, and
Binnie back on the small screen, life couldn’t be better!
a series will definitely suck even if the biggest stars are on it. al right, people may still watch and stick with that series for the sake of supporting their favorite stars but not everybody will have the guts to stick it out until the end.
i for one had this experience. remember Mi-rae’s Choice/Marry Him if you dare?
the premise is great: time travelling to change the past etc., etc…
it stars Yoon Eun-hye, Lee Dong-gun and Jung Yong-hwa… did i get to finish it? NO! i have no words to describe it. i simply got tired watching it before midway.
Boys Before Flower and Meteor Garden practically cast newbies in the industry. Hana Yori Dango’s story is great and was neatly translated in each country’s localized pallete, catching each generation’s audience attention and interest anew.
So right now, i don’t care about the casting etc., simply excited to know that binnie will be in a series soon. Secret Garden has been what, 4 years ago?
OMG!!! Can’t wait to see Hyun Bin back on screen…
This isn’t even the point of the article but
JGS as Yoon Ji Hoo instead of KHJ.
I can’t imagine that at all.
(Don’t get me wrong, I did adore JGS in YB, but from there, he kind of went downhill for me. And well, KHJ – never again)
Binnie coming back to. Sbc
Get ha jin won to be his co star
I am there brushing up my korean
Ready Binnie 4 years too long
I agree .I want a reunion of HB and HJW. The best OTP ever.
Yes I cant wait to see Hyun Bin in drama again. #1 good actor in S.Korea and most handsome of all
Reading this after two years and thinking what could’ve happened if he Hyun Bin would’ve chosen both these projects or even one. KMHM was a bigger hit and a better show than HJM and DOTS gave SJK the best post military break which could’ve solidified Hyun Bin’s career.