Now that Descendants of the Sun is over, Song Joong Ki‘s entertainment career is going to look a whole lot different in the near future. There is no word on his next drama but he has a movie lined up, and he’s certainly going to get his pick of roles and CFs. I still don’t think he projects a very masculine manly imagine despite buying him as military superman Captain Yoo Shi Jin, that was a romance novel type of dramatization and he sold it with the flirting self-aware confidence. He can do melos as evidenced by Nice Guy but maybe a classic rom-com could be great to keep his new found fans happy with more romance up his sleeve. He attended a press conference for DotS last week after the final episode aired where he discussed how meaningful this role is for him and laid to rest once more that his relationship in real like with costar Song Hye Kyo is to respect her as a noona with an impressive body of work behind her.
“There is no word on his next project” Huh? His next project was already announced around Feb 2016, which he mentioned at DOTS press conference. The movie is Battleship Island, in which he plays the role of a soldier again (some independent forces). It’s set against backdrop of WW2, where he’s part of some mission to rescue some 400 Koreans captured by Japanese. And I heard the female lead is a comfort woman. Filming is going to take place end of May or June until year end. As much as I dislike historical military movies, I’m going to watch this one just for SJK.
LOL are you sure you even read what was said at the conference? No word on his next project? The news of him starring in a film with So Ji Sub was out weeks ago and he confirmed it once more at the conference where he even added he’ll shave his head for the part. I know you don’t offer the best info, but at least try.
Cool it.
Koala is a human like the rest of us and has every right to make mistakes or forget things.
You just try running a blog and having to post updates every few hours and keep track of news continuously to see what it’s like.
No need to be rude.
I think she means after the movie you are talking about. She knows about the movie she wrote about it a while ago. So come down she is not coming from negative place.
It’s okay guys. ^^ Thanks for the support but I guess some people feel the overwhelming urge to be patronizing. I’m sure their blog is always 100% accurate at all times. XD
“There is no word on his next drama but he has a movie lined up, and he’s certainly going to get his pick of roles and CFs.”
No, yours is accurate, it’s just that they are selective on what they read and mixed the whole idea. Really, get a grip guys.
I know right? It’s not like you have a real life. And keep track of Korean,Chinese and Japanese entertainment news. Plus watch dramas and do recaps.
Some people just concentrate on obsessing over their bias and thinks the whole world should know their every move.
I like SJK but not bothered to read about his news outside of a drama or movie he is currently starring in.
She said there is no word about he’s next drama but he has a movie liend up
super rude. i know you don’t offer the best comments but at least try to be less patronizing
I don’t really nor do I think we should think Koala’s blogs as some sources of news media. I consider her blogs as open forums for drama fans to share ideas and opinions more than entertainment news updates. For that purpose, this is a pretty decent place to play around.
“There is no word on his next drama but he has a movie lined up, and he’s certainly going to get his pick of roles and CFs.”
If you want to quote her line make sure it is correct. It was clearly written so please don’t mix up things. Read with comprehension. Read it again and make sure you don’t change the wordings.
I don’t expect ockoala to have all the info 100% of the time, but that part was edited later. I know what I read, it was “there is no word on his next project” then straightaway mentioned he’ll get his pick. Anyway, if it’s edited, pls don’t pretend it wasn’t.
@ghiru – don’t be so rude!! READ FIRST before commenting.
To be honest, his character in DOTS was not that interesting. His character was the same in ep 1 as in ep 20. There was no character development or growth…it was just “I’m Mr. Awesome Badass Charming Soldier” from beginning to end. SHK’s character was the one with depth and growth.
I hope that in his next drama, he takes a role that actually has a strong, interesting character arc.
Yep, I agree with everything you said. And on top of it, I don’t even think he was all that believable as “Mr. Awesome Badass Charming Soldier”. Charming maybe, but definitely not buying the awesome badass. IMO he couldn’t quite portray the hard edge that his character (a special ops captain with 15 years experience) required. Like Koala said, we bought it regardless because he did play the witty, flirty, confident side of his character pretty well. But overall I think SJK is a bit too gentle, soft, baby-faced and not masculine enough to play roles like this.
Yes, but he was charming and engaging to watch. Both characters needed each other and complimented each other. I do wish SJ had a bit more depth though, though I feel his job being so difficult was part because he couldn’t open up much. He needed support and understanding from MY, but he wasn’t ever going to be more than he was, which was a positive guy who helped people.
Though agree 10000% that MY’s character carried the show and SJ was there to change her and she grew from her love of him, usually it’s the opposite where the female lead is there for the male lead to grow… but here it’s all MY.
I couldn’t agree with you more 🙂
Is there a guide or measurement system that measures the interesting degree of characters based on only character growth/development? To say that a character is not interesting because it did not have any character growth is quite … underwhelming. There can be irritating/bitchy/get-on-my-nerves characters who develop a lot during the drama, but I can still dislike them. There are other factors such as personality of the character, what the actor brings into his character, acting skill etc.
So yes, we all know Yoo Si Jin as a character did not grow much throughout the drama. (No need to keep repeating that point) Understandably, a character with 15 years of army experience is already a stable character. If the director / scriptwriter wanted a male lead that developed a lot, they would have set it as a young soldier of conflicting background who just started out in the army – that would ensure lots more growth (i.e. just like Onew’s character).
And despite the flat character growth, most people still find Yoo Si Jin an interesting character.
Can’t agree more! When or where did it say in playwright 101 that an interesting drama character must entail character development? LOL..I don’t see any particular character development in other critically acclaimed dramas and films. Only fans in Kdramaland dwell on this element so much.
I totally forgot about his movie, prolly cuz I am only looking forward to his dramas, heh. But more SJK in anything is great for his career!
Love the man! I’d watch a movie of him eating cereal.
The movie actually sounds interesting. The problem with actors when they reach hallyu status (and he was getting there or already there even before DOTS because I think he’s a major factor in the drama’s success.) is they tend to stay away from dramas. I don’t begrudge them their CFs and making money in China and movie careers….really I don’t; I just like to see them in drama world. I do think there is a fear factor in jumping into another drama again after having such a huge hit because you just never know if it is really going to work out or be a dud. I guessed DOTS would be successful but nothing like what happened. I enjoyed parts of it, but it was definitely flawed and my final thought was: this could have been epic, but it wasn’t.
I think working environment and pay scale are the major factors that rising acting talents may prefer to stay away from dramas once they are demanded in other sectors such as filming and CFs. Why not? We like our favorite actors/actresses to have more frequent appearances in drama that is more accessible to us. But from their perspectives, getting offers from movie industry and CFs is like huge promotion.
agree. we all know dramas are one hellish three months of no-sleep, all night filming. Luckily more Hallyu and A-list actors are pushing the pre-produced method like DoTs and Uncontrollably Fond. And then you have actors who have a special relationship with the director or writer and is willing to come back for them like Jo In Sung. But Song Joong Ki seems like a loyal guy and would be down to come back for a drama if the opportunity fit. Right now though, I think he wants to challenge himself more as an actor so I can also see him doing different roles in all types of medium and genres, and can be more experimental in his characters. Considering how he’s protective of his privacy and is more down to earth, I’d be surprised if he went for another mainstream type of drama like a rom-com just to get more fans/cater to them; i think he’s gotten plenty of love.
The only reason K-dramaland is pre-producing is because of China’s new censorship laws which means they have to see the drama completed or it cannot air simultaneously. I agree they should get everything they can when success hits because it can be very fleeting….doesn’t mean I won’t miss them though.
Adore this man.
Love to watch him in everything. His looks are not my favorite. But somehow he exudes a lot of charm in his dramas thanks to his versatile acting talent. He may not look masculine as ppl perceive to be but he looks great in uniform to the surprise of the DotS PD and the producer. He was also extremely badass in action scenes thanks to his agility;even his costars in DotS Alpha Team all said that he’s man of man in action scenes. Special forces don’t necessarily look masculine in appearance. (Can see that from the documentaries of several US special forces units.) The most important qualifications of special forces are physical endurance and agility besides other more intellectual criteria such as sharp acumen and leadership. Masculinity is never in the list of special forces criteria.
I’m not sure if my gut feeling is right or not. I always think ep 12 could have been a complete and good wrap up of DotS. But product placement demands from investors prompted either the extension of unnecessary storyline to more episodes or the other way around by cutting several scenes in the last 4 episodes so that they could be forcing comical/awkward PPL into the script. Such a pity. Perhaps they could have had more narratives using Uruk as backdrop. But because of PPL demand from investors, they had to snatch the setting back to S. Korea. Who would really drive a new Hyundai model in a war-torn country anyway? LOL.
see the funny thing is, they broke even way early in the drama, like ep 4 i think. so for them to recut and focus more on PPL in the last episodes is ridiculous. But since the upfront cost was so high in the millions and that pre-produced dramas have had low success rates, i can see why production wanted to cover their butts by contracting a ton of PPL before the drama aired and then they became obligated to show them. i just wish kdramas had a better advertising format to more easily recoup these costs instead of depending on selling foreign rights after the fact
I guess the PPL demand from the investors of DotS must have been overwhelming given the exorbitant production cost that’s actually equivalent to that for film production. Several news reported that DotS investors have recouped all their investment costs and started reaping huge profits from PPL in DotS until now. While I’m happy that pre production with sufficient financing from these investors has made DotS such a huge hit and SJK shoot to Hallyu stardom, this could also be a concern that any talented script writers can ever come up with sensible screenplays without comical interruptions from PPL.
read many comments here on YSJ having no character development… just because the writer did not put much effort in changing YSJ. I feel SJK is doing great to play this role, but this is not his best acting. I enjoy Werewolf Boy and The Innocent Man a lot more in terms of his range and emotions portrayal. I trust that he can show us a whole lot more if he is given a better script…
YSJ was already “perfect” to start with. He didn’t need to change.
Does that mean he didn’t need a real acting, just look handsome and stay as a kool badass captain throughout the whole drama? Interesting.
@Rockyroad, I guess you’re not a fan of SJK as many other ppl and I. So you sound very sarcastic. It’s your taste you don’t appreciate his acting in DotS. Nonetheless, staying cool badass also entails skills. Some actors can’t look cool even they try extremely hard. Interesting!
@rockyroad
No? I’m definitely not down playing SJK. I love him and Captain Yoo. He did a wonderful job and was very compelling and beloved for a reason. It’s wonderful to see a nice guy who was respectful and brave as a main character for sure. SJ also had an air of sadness to him as well, but he hid it well. But you could tell he really needed MY to make his life happier. He just didn’t dwell on it.
@mel, this Rockyroad along with some other visitors of Koala’s blogs are troll to DotS and the cast. I’ve already read multiple comments of theirs on different threads. They just snuck on to grind their axes and deliberately dissed up the drama as well as the cast. After reading so many of their comments about DotS and SJK or SHK, I won’t bother to have reasoning with them.
Hmm, first, I found the conference during DOTS broadcasting quite unusual when it was getting popular and no scandals were occurring with it. Now this conference. Why did he need a conference just to discuss about how meaningful the drama is to him? He could do this with magazines interviews instead. Isn’t he in enough spotlight, so has to take advantage of his public appearance as much as he can (well, or his company)?
Anyway, good choice of movie. First, the historical Korean-Japanese war plots usually attract a lot of korean audience. The latest example is Assassination. Second, the Hwang jung min golden factor. Damm, any movies with him in them are hits nowadays. Not sure about SJS. He hasn’t been lucky with movie career so far.
Most actors do the press rounds after dramas (see KJW and Jin Goo doing a million interviews throughout the drama), but SJK is very busy so he just took questions in this way without having to spend the day doing interviews.
There seems to be some sour grapes who don’t have life to see a rising Hallyu star more or as successful as their oppas. C’mon, if you don’t think highly of DotS or the leading man, just get your life and keep yourself safe from anything referencing SJK since obvious the huge hit of the drama and rising popularity of the cast must be pain in your ass. You’re free to go fangirling your oppas or your princess. If you keep coming back farting your crap, just be ready to get all the dirt back on you. Sorry my foul language only fits those who deserve it.
LOL… love this!
I haven’t commented in years but this made me crack up so much.
lol seriously. This goes for the hate against SHK as well for daring to star in another blockbuster drama while their unnis are flopping somewhere.
SJK isn’t my bias, but I like him a lot. Nice guy and great actor. I think there is some bitterness because he’s on the way up while most people’s oppas have to go to the army still.
I’m rewatching DotS and this time I really paid much attention to all the details. I never watched SHK’s drama before except for TWTWB but I didn’t like the character of the hero in TWTWB. I think SHK really slays in DotS. Without her, SJK can’t be so convincing in his playfulness and manliness at the same time. Some obvious troll even only watched 1/32 of the whole series but blahblahblahblah throughout all the recaps. LOL What’s this?
@Drama2016 , you really , really love the princess. I am 100% sure she is your bias. You can not go without mention her. Even in an article that has nothing to do with her. Look for therapy, yours has become an obsession .
Hey yo schooler, you meant SHK my princess? Oh my great honor! I love her in DotS. Sure why not. She’s awesome as Dr. MY and this is my first drama of her. Agree, let’s look for therapy together. You go for your psychiatric treatment to get over your PSH. And I’ll do my part. LMAO. hahahahaha
@mel: I asked you “”Does that mean…?” because I didn’t know for sure what you meant then. Now based on your response to me earlier, and to Miss Drama2016 The DOTS delulu, is it ok to say that your reasons used to defend SJK’s role/acting in DOTS could be much biased? I could refer to a role that contained the factors like “he was already “perfect” to start with. He didn’t need to change”, that “he also had an air of sadness to him as well, but he hid it well”. But I have no doubt you wouldnt give the same defense to that role like to SJK’role here, lol.
@Drama2016 The DOTS delulu: why keep saying as if you were Miss Know All that could read other people’s mind? Not many people have jumped on your DOTS or your leading man in it with malice intentions, if you are calm enough to realise. Some bee stings on your ass just can’t make you panic like a crazy bull in a Spain bullfighting, ok? It is lucky that DOTS popularity came when it didn’t have other strong enemies around for its delulu fans to fight with. Otherwise, you would definitely know what a real fanwar would be (Heirs vs YWCFTS could be an excellent reference, lol, and I have no doubt that aggressive delulus can never win). Enjoy the spotlight, save more positive energy for worthier wars. That’s it!
hahahahahaha…man, I give up on you. LOL…Just enjoy your PSH and we SJK and DotS will continue to rave about our fave. Let’s be delulu fans of our own bias in our own way. Happy????!!!!! LOL
Oooops! I must have taken you as delulu fan of PSH. LOL..Maybe you aren’t. Whatever! Just happened to find quite a few PSH fans also antis of DotS. LOL
Drama2016 , you really , really love the princess. I am 100% sure she is your bias. You can not go without mention her. Even in an article that has nothing to do with her. Look for therapy, yours has become an obsession . I most notify her agency to keep an eye on you? Safety precautions .
you can’t make comments about anything without dragging PSH’s name into it. I think she is your love to hate bias but you won’t admit it. I am a PSH fan and I loved….really loved watching Dots drama. I liked all the cast and even if the actress isn’t my favorite I still enjoyed her in this drama. I think you think about her too much. I agree that you need some sort of cooling down period to get over your obsession about her. So strange for a grown business woman to act and sound this way……
Yup! I can’t get over her b/c you fangirls keep reminding me your love. LOL
BTW, this troll Rockyroad along with other DotS/SJK antis happen to be PSH fans. hahahahha.
again with reading situations that don’t exist…..you know in the majority of cases you are the one that brings her up first….almost all the time. Of course her fans feel they need to defend her although they really don’t because you are as much her fan as we are, aren’t you? You love her so much you can’t help mention her anytime someone disagrees with your opinion or says something clever about a drama that is opposite your opinion so to deflect from that you mention PSH…..so sad…but go ahead and keep it up since you have nothing really unique or sensible to say anyway…..just biased criticism that sounds like hatefulness….
Hey you’re like me everywhere in Koala’s playground. LOL…Yup! Let’s continue our hype over your fave and let the whole world of K dramaland know I don’t like her acting. Make it known as much as possible as long you continuously and nonstop dwell on your grudge against my dislike of your bias. LMAO. I have plenty of time just dropping a couple of lines here and there. I so much love Ms. Koala’s free forum. LOL.
I have a ton of other favorite actresses but don’t get to mention them because they seem to be laying low and I only mention PSH because you dwell on her non-stop…
I do not have a grudge against you…..you simply think you are of more importance in others minds than you are….I simply like to mention when you over hype your hatred….and who cares what dramaland thinks about a “kid” liking or not liking…..most think we don’t have a say in what is good or not….so to be honest I don’t really care whether you like her or not – I just like to mention when you bring her up out of nowhere when you are called out by other people posting comments…..so I will stop in this line because it is no longer fun..you take yourself far too seriously…you really should stop bragging about your self….makes you seem less than you might be…..
I enjoy this blog site tremendously because I get a heads up on new dramas but you have deliberately decided to make it your soap box for hatred…takes a lot of fun out of reading others opinions because you have decided no one else’s opinions are as valid as yours…..such a bore and if kids think you are a bore you really are…..perhaps it is your age that makes you act as you do?
Hahaha I’m reading your comment that is basically describing yourself. You should have learned much earlier that tagging me along is not fun at all. Among all the fandoms of K actresses, PSH’s fan club is perhaps the most vocal and most annoying. Not against the actress, but her fans have made her even less appealing. Finally you decided to stop all these gibberish exchanges with me and that’s the wise decision I hope for. BTW, your crap venting on me doesn’t change who I am and you’re a total irrelevant stranger to me in real life. LOL
old is old no matter how it’s sliced…..not stopping because it’s you but because it’s stupid and childish….
love