Rising Young Actor Ahn Hyo Seob Cast as Leading Man Opposite Kim Yoo Jung for jTBC Rom-com Clean With Passion for Now

This could either be the breakout of a new acting star, think Yoon Kyun Sang in Pinocchio, or the underwhelming big debut of a new acting star like Yang Se Jong in Temperature of Love. Cable network jTBC has cast rising actor Ahn Hyo Seob opposite Kim Yoo Jung in its upcoming K-drama adaptation of webtoon Clean with Passion for Now. The drama doesn’t have a confirmed time slot and is slated for airing in middle of 2018. I’ve only seen Ahn Hyo Seob in Entertainer and he also had smaller supporting role in last year’s weekend drama Father is Strange so there isn’t enough for me to gauge his elevation to leading man status in a high profile drama due to the casting of Kim Yoo Jung who has not followed up with a drama since the mega hit Moonlight Drawn By Clouds and has been very selective and turned down several dramas last year. The premise of cleaning sounds cute in the opposites attract way, with a neat freak cleaning company CEO falling for a messy girl with a bright personality an warm heart.


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Rising Young Actor Ahn Hyo Seob Cast as Leading Man Opposite Kim Yoo Jung for jTBC Rom-com Clean With Passion for Now — 32 Comments

    • She hasn’t confirmed this yet, and there’s no comment from Ahn Hyoseop’s side that he’s been offered the male lead role.

  1. The plot doesn’t excite me much since this sounds like your run-of-the-mill romcom. A lot will depend on the execution. I’m curious as to how PD Noh Jongchan will handle this. His last romcom was Personal Taste, and it was quite forgettable. But then he went on to direct Queen Insoo and Cruel Palace, so I’m interested to see how he’ll handle his return to romcom.

    I have mixed feelings about Ahn Hyoseop. On one hand, he’s a fresh face in dramaland, and he’s cute, tall, and only four years older than Yoojung. On the other hand, I found him stiff and bland playing the proto-Kim Hyung in Splish Splash Love. Idk about his performance in FiS.

    I’m looking forward to seeing more Yoojung this year so I do want her to take this drama. I hope she accepts that HBO horror anthology offer too.

    • Same sentiments about the plot, but if Kim Yoo Jung decides to accept the drama then I’ll be sure to check it out. I believe she something about the drama and character that made her accept it.

      As for Ahn Hyo Seop, I’ve only seen him on Splish Splash and he really lacks alot with regards to his acting, but I read comments on twitter that since that was his first role but he did better on FIS. Though your comment makes me worried, aside from the production company and with still no broadcasting schedule. I’m just hoping that this PDs recent works (though sageuk) where he really did focused on the female character would be enough together with the writers credits to make the drama work.

      And I’m also hoping that she accepts the HBO drama, its just 1 hour long hence shooting may not be as hectic as a drama or full-length film. Also, it would be a good experience for her.

      • @namu – I saw him in FIS and liked him better than in Splish Splash Love but he was still unimpressive and a bit wooden there, I really felt like the credit for the appeal of his storyline should go to his costar Ryu Hwa Young (who really felt like she had to work overtime to generate that chemistry which otherwise seems to come naturally to her in other dramas with slightly more adept costars).

        On the plus side – at least he’s only a little older than KYJ. 18 and 22 is a decent gap for an onscreen pairing.

  2. I find both leads so bland. Neither is a strong actor and they always seem to play the same kind of character. I guess I’m going to pass on this on. Too blah.

  3. I’ve been a fan of Kim Yoo Jung from her Dong Yi/Chaser/METS era, hence I’m happy that she’s really come along way with regards to acting range (her eyes and voice intonation are just wow) and popularity. I’m also proud of the fact that she’s not following in the usual strategy of young actors to be everywhere, it’s quite brave of her to be selective with her works pre- and post-MDBC. I know its a risk, but for someone like her whose been acting since she was a toddler and would have a somewhat irregular school life, concentrating on her last year in regular HS would be good for her in the long run.

    I was quite surprised with the choice of ahn hyo seop as the male lead since I know he hasn’t even done a second male lead and personally, the acting he showed in splish splash was wooden and lacks the charm. But I believe that Yoo Jung, being the selective girl that she is found something charming and interesting about the drama and character and I hope it works.

  4. the male lead was bad in father is strange,I wish Kim yoo Jung reject this drama.everything from this drama screams mediocre to me the PD,sypnosis etc.

  5. He was in Entertainer? He must have been pretty forgettable then! I really can’t remember him. The only cast members I recall other than Ji Sung, Hyeri and Kang Min Hyuk are Gong Myung and the actor that played the little boy’s dad. Honestly, he only made an impression with Father Is Strange, and the web drama he acted with Kim Seulgi because he was the lead. My impression of him is someone who is very green, and still learning his craft. Certainly not one who is ready for a lead role or to be paired with such an accomplished actress. If they wanted a young actor, there are several in their early twenties who would have made a better match and can carry a lead role. Still hoping he’s a supporting cast.??. Personally, I wasn’t at all impressed by Personal Taste, if this is the same PD, then I’m not too enthusiastic about watching this.

    • To be very frank, he’s very good-looking but FAR from leading man material. There are much better young actors out there in his age range (94-97ers), it’s not even like he’s famous or has a huge fanbase or anything.

      He’s bearable in small doses but if Kim Yoo Jung accepts this role, she’s going to be the one doing the bulk of the acting and the work to make him bearable – he’s basically Nam Joo Hyuk mk. II but without the charm to somewhat offset the wooden acting.

  6. He was the male lead opposite Kim Seul Gi in Queen of the Ring. I thought he was charming. Green, yes, but better than many. I think he does well with the strong actresses he has been paired with and can be a good education for him.

  7. She’s had a hard time last year because of that scandal and she even got hospitalized for it. Maybe that’s another reason why she’s been cautious with comeback. Not to forget that she had senior year at high school and now she’s taking a little break before she enrolls at a university. That is if she has any intentions of studying further. She has the same dilemma as many child actresses do, how to shed that child actress, nation’s sweet heart image. Especially when she was such a loved child actress since she was basically a toddler.

    • I think she already decided not to attend university – for now. She said she will take her time to choose what she wants to study and therefore she will focus on acting first.

  8. Shallow me thinks this would be a good visual combi. I’ve not watched Ahn Hyo Seob in anything (I thought he’s Hyung Seob from produce 101). Hopefully he’ll be fine here since it’s a simple rom-com role.

    Seems like Kim Yoojung is taking a long time to accept the role. Maybe she will will choose to drop it.

    • Sadly to say, visuals aren’t everything – he’s not a good actor at all. And he can barely stay afloat in simple romcom storylines even in supporting roles so I doubt he’s got lead-level skills.

      • @teacakes That’s a pity then. I was honestly disappointed that we went from rumored Yang Sejong as male lead (Choi WooShik-2nd lead) to him. I’m not against rookie actors getting lead roles, but most of these are scene-stealer actors. But Ahn Hyo Seop hasn’t even proven himself in a second lead or even became a “scenestealer” as a 3rd or even 4th lead. I’m just hoping that if true, this casting was due to an “audition”, where he was able to prove his match with the character and acting. But I don’t think Kim Yoo Jung has confirmed, so I’m not how this will go.

      • @namu literally the only thing I like about this casting is his age. I wonder how they arrived at him, anyway – there are so many much better actors in that age group and it’s not even as if he is famous. I mean, they couldn’t get someone like Yook Sung Jae, Kwak Dong Yeon, or even a former child actor? Even if the casting went all the way up to 93-ers, any of those boys would have done better than this.

  9. I have to say I liked him in FiS but never thought he stood out as an actor. Is he better than other actors in his age-range? Yes. But are there actors better than him? 1000 times, yes.

    The only good thing about this are the visuals and the age since Ahn Hyo Seob is at least not 10 years older than Kim Yoo Jung. So from that point of view it would be a hit.

    BUT I want her to skip this drama and go for something else. 🙂

    • Part of me wants her to skip this due to several reasons, and part of me really wants to see her onscreen. Though it seems YJ is really in no rush to just randomly accept projects to increase her visibility or she’ll only do 1 project this year, so there is a certain level of expectation that the project she chooses is good in paper. But i think she already accepted this drama with the way the production is trying to match the male lead’s age to hers, just a guess.

  10. I seriously doubt he is gonna star in this. Wasn’t he cast in The Great Seducer? Please let Yang Sejong be the male lead instead.

  11. Really? why most of the comments here are all about negatives from the casts? For me it is not bad for the begginers to be stiff or look plain in acting…all actors starts from being amateur and improves more in the future…you don’t have to judge too early for them. Mind me if you really believe that “don’t judge the book by its cover” somehow that relates in this saying. Well, I’m not an immature fan…so whatever roles that may come to Kim Too Jung…I will support her wholeheartedly❤??

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