K-ent Discusses Kim Soo Hyun’s 500 Million Won Per Episode Salary for K-drama One Ordinary Day as the Highest Paid Actor

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• They all get paid too much so whatever, but I admit, I don't really get why Kim Soo-hyun gets that much more than everybody else. He's just alright too me.

  • Never understood the reason why KSH gets these sky high salaries either. There are literally so many Hallyu stars just as popular and successful as him yet he keeps demanding a higher salary with literally every new project and gets away with it. Even A list movie stars like LJJ are taking a lower salary than him. I doubt even WB (if he ever came back) would demand a salary that high.

    • Do people here even watch US TV? It is still in the golden age of television, and prestige TV has moved into opting for the miniseries format. HBO and Netflix consistently churn out excellent productions, especially HBO.

    • I was not even able to finish ep 1 of one ordinary day, not interesting enough, so he got paid so high for a dull drama

  • Those salaries are a mere fraction of what US actors ate pd. In the long run it is bad, & why US tv is all low cost & quality reality shows.

    • US tv hasn't failed because of salaries it's because they stopped trying. Every other drama is either a reboot or a remake. Their most successful shows are adaptations of fantasy novels or YA novels which they end up distorting to point of non recognition. Once they have a successful show on their hands they milk it till the last drop which kills the plot and exhausts the actors creatively. The reason why Kdramas are successful is because they end within a short time period which allows actors to challenge themselves to many other roles instead of being stuck with one character which doesn't allow them room for growth.

• i don't even think the high salaries would matter that much if the smaller staff of the production team is paid well but we constantly get reports and news of how production staff are treated awfully with unhealthy working conditions all for barely any money or sometimes they're not even paid on time while reports of actors' sky high salaries keep releasing

• Considering how much K-content/Kdramas have blown up in the last few years. I'm not against it tbh, given how much more these production houses make compare to their talents. However, more money should also be given to the crew as well. Ju Ji Hoon recently said that despite K-content blowing up, the pay is still the same for cast/crew/PDs.

  • Squid Game made Netflix billions of $, but none of that money trickled down. Netflix ended up giving 5-figure bonuses to the cast, but that's chump change compared to how much it earned.

    The issue is that k-dramas have just started blowing up globally, so compensation structures have yet to catch up. I'm wondering if actors will start renegotiating their comp structures to incorporate profit-sharing.

    As for how crew members get compensated, I don't know if South Korea has unions, but this is when unions would get involved to renegotiate pay & benefits.

• ditto what others said about paying the crew more. I feel like productions should be careful about paying actors that much especially when it means skimping out on other parts of the drama and shoving in as much PPL as possible.

  Ordinary day is only 8 episodes, so I guess they can afford to pay him that much per episode. Still that's a lot of money. Like Game of Thrones money - once it was confirmed to be a hit.

• Omg i can believe that sbs paid song hye kyo for 200 million won just to watch her botox face? No wonder she can't move her face because that will make wrinkle in her jaw.Yikes.

• I agree with you that celebrity should lowering their salaries. Also, High salaries limiting the choice of actor project. They might get great high budget drama, But that kind of drama is always adjusting with mainstream tastes, which limiting their range of acting. and PPL will always be there to accomodate the high budget which more often than not distracting the flow of the story.

  I wish my fav who has become a star lowering his salaries so he can choose wider range of project.

  • There is no reason for celebs to lower their salaries. Even Kim Nam Gil gets paid around 200M per episode doesn't stop him from having a wide selection of dramas and roles that are both critical and commercial success. Higher salaries don't equal mainstream only dramas. It's the actors choice that prefers public friendly dramas that can get high ratings.

    • @Miwak : I don't Think Kim Nam Gil has wide range of acting and I don't think he get the best of example celebrity trapped in their high salaries. 200M is still consider not that high compare to hallyu star drama who get paid more than that.

      I find many supporting roles is more challenging, than the main roles one too... they enable to become everything, meanwhile the main roles has been become typical and doesn't always goes out of the box

• Eat the rich.

  I side eye celebrities that like to publicize their earnings. It just paints a big target on their back, especially when people are getting angrier over the widening income inequality.

• Aside from the overseas sales all 3 dramas by the top highest paid actresses have underperformed in both ratings and online buzz. It's quite possible they'll all be forced to take pay cuts for their next dramas. I'm surprised SYJ is still getting paid only 100 million won per episode despite the success of CLOY and why at all should she be a lower tier than SHK and JJH of all people? If senior actresses are getting paid so less when even newbie idol turned actors like CEW can easily earn 100 million per episode the wage gap not only among actors-actresses but male and female members of the crew must also be pretty big. This considering the crew is already being paid peanuts to beging with. I also wonder how much star writers and directors get paid.

  • SYJ's agency has never disclosed her salary, which is why she never appears on these lists. The best the media can do is estimate her salary. You can bet she made as much as or close to what HB made on CLOY which was a lot. I think HB routinely comes in as #2 or #3 highest paid make actor.

    • @flowerpot The same article that talked about JJH and SHK salaries specifically mentions SYJ and her salary as well. The original article is on Naver. The agencies don't have to disclose the salaries I bet the production houses disclose them. Culture Depot was the production house for crash landing and is the home of JJH whose salary was disclosed. @Yukoi The standards of Korea is strange but SYJ has always been lower in rank to JJH and SHK despite her success in film and iconic roles like The Classic and Summer Scent because JJH and SHK are considered Goddess level visuals in addition to their hit roles in Sassy Girl and Autumn in My Heart respectively. This is the reason why JJH has over 20 CFs even today and SHK endorsements are in the high end products category. SYJ also doesn't media play her image which makes her less visible in public than both JJH and SHK who live very private lives but have an active PR machine.

    • First of all HB took a pay cut for CLOY just so that SYJ could be paid more and he still earned more than her. He made around 150-70 while she got around 125. This was reported last year too when KSH was paid 200 for IOTNBO. Second it's fact that SYJ earns much less than JJH and SHK and will always earn less than them no matter how successful her projects are because of the brand value both actresses carry. Wether in the past or the future JJH is the gold standard of legend and SHK is the standard of goddess visuals. They never earned reputation for their acting but for their charisma and beauty. So SYJ fans can make as many arguments as they want but she can never get more prominent or pay than either JJH or SHK. The two actresses basically control the China market which is BIG money. Thirdly these figures are reported by the producers and channels like Studio Dragon, A Story, Studio S etc who make the contract so it's very accurate since they have the exact figure. OTT money has caused an inflation in salaries recently so whatever figures existed 10 years ago are not relevant since the OTT money for Hallyu stars is pouring in like water. They can demand any salary because they know even if ratings fail the overseas sales will not only make up for it but leave producers with a big margin. Netflix made 50x what it spent on SG even after giving them bonuses. Overseas audience bring in the money while local audience only brings in ratings. Which is why bigger celebs are shifting almost entirely to OTT. Coming back to my point the ranking of actresses will always have JJH and SHK towering over SYJ no matter what happens. The brand value of these two actresses defines an entire generation and specifically because they take long breaks between projects makes them more in demand. Unlike SYJ who works almost nonstop.

    • @Rove, no sorry that is not true. It was never reported HB took a pay cut for CLOY, or even that it was so SYJ could be paid more. Please provide a link or proof of that because I've never read anything of the sort. Like I said there seems to be lots of unverified stories floating around and they don't have any credibility.

    • @rove big money China market doesn't mean as much as it did before thaad happened. now they are just foreign investors, not really targeting their own homebase anymore with jdramas, they just look to make profit of it on international market outside china. they have their own burgeoning industry to profiteer from now

  • @Riv, back in 2006, SYJ was noted as being the highest paid actress when she received 50 billion won per episode for her drama Alone in Love. It was widely reported at the time- here is a link:
    http://m.hankooki.com/m_sp_view.php?WM=sp&FILE_NO=c3AyMDA2MDEwNjE2MjQwNTU4MzkwLmh0bQ==&ref=t.co&isNv=

    Since then I've seen very inconsistent figures regarding her salary, including CLOY which makes me wonder how credible those numbers are.

    • yeah none of these numbers are credible tbh. I remember a variety show trying to cast actors for their movie project and calling up managers of actors they are friends with and the managers would always keep a tight lip when asked about the fees on air.

• There was an article published last year that discussed the rise of talent fees due to the emergence of more OTT platforms. With more streaming platforms entering the market, more content is needed so this opens up many more opportunities for the actors (both genders). Ones with international draw AND acting skills are most sought after and KSH is one of them. I believe Coupang Play offered a very lucrative amount for him to take the risk with a brand new platform, but the reported amount is pure speculation. The article also mentioned even male actors/idols with little acting experience are getting 100 million won per episode. On the flip side, only the top actresses can command 100 million won or more. Just recently, it was reported Jun Ji Hyun and Song Hye Kyo are the top paid actresses and getting 200 million won per episode.

  • Coupang didn’t pay him though but the producer of the drama which is his agency.

    • Coupang Play is the investor that funded the project, much like how Netflix invest in other Korean dramas. His agency is just one of three producers involved in the drama and also getting paid by Coupang. Don't sound stupid if you don't know anything. I can read from original sources and not rely on sites this site for news.

    • The Production company sells the exclusive right to the streaming or broadcasting company and employs all actors. No foolish investors would employ any cast and crew of any productions.

    • No production company is foolish enough to begin filming without the funding in place. The director, who is also one of the producers, said they were able to produce the quality shown because of the budget given to them by Coupang Play.

• You think SYJ gets paid less than those underperforming hallyu stars? When SHK's current drama is being produced (aka paid for) by her own agency? Wanna take bets it's all on paper? Lol.

  SYJ doesn't live and die by media play. Her excellent filmography speaks for her. That article just said that SYJ gets paid more than 100M won. It doesn't say she only gets around 100M won. Like I said media play and they had to include SYJ in it. SMH.

  • SHK does get paid more and even KSH all his dramas post military are produced by his own agency. Doesn't mean the numbers aren't real. You're only hearing about it because the numbers are real and some industry people are complaining it's pushing up production cost beyond reasonable means. Even the HP director mentioned how grateful he was that JJS agreed to take a lower salary because he didn't have the budget to cast him. Actors are getting massive salaries but producers don't have unlimited money so they have cut costs elsewhere and it's mostly the crew that ends up getting the shorter end of the stick. Actress are getting only half the salary of actors otherwise it would be impossible to cast two popular actors in one project. One of the reason why Jirisan is as bad as it is because all the money was spent on salaries and very little on anything else. But it's also true this is the worst script KEH has ever written. SYJ doesn't media play I agree but that's also why she gets paid less. Her filmography is excellent but SHK is still SHK despite her inability act or emote her fanbase is much bigger than SYJ and what's amazing is that over 20 years but SHK fanbase has never shrunk.

    • How sure are you that SHK's fanbase is larger than SYJ's. Have you done an official headcount? Lol. This is an article about Kim Soo Hyun but you just had to make this about YOUR fave again. Typical of SHK stans.

      Reality check: With how NWBU is doing, a lot of kdrama fans have began speaking up about her acting ability (or lack thereof). Your fave can take all the money in the entertainment market, but even she herself acknowledges Son Ye Jin, the real actor's actor. The biggest champ in their line of profession. Know the facts first before you shit on somebody else.

    • How sure are you that SYJ's fanbase is smaller than SHK's? Have you done an official headcount? Lol.

    • And btw, her fanbase totally shrunk. Lots of them were fans of the songsong ship and packed up when it sank. Oh, and have you seen how much she's getting dragged lately over her performance in NWBU? Not really into these petty fights but your fandom should really have a taste of your own poison every once in a while.

    • the numbers is however much his company wants to mediaplay at this point. same as shk. there is never confirmation for these numbers they just float it around. doesn't make it untrue but it also doesn't automatically make it true

  • I think it's better for SYJ not to disclose her real salary. After all she's an actor's actor. She said it herself that salary is not the most important factor in choosing her projects which is precisely why her reputation and ticketing power remains unmatched. Audiences trust that she won't compromise her work for money. That's what separates Chungmuro stars from Hallyu stars.

  • LOL you are so salty when it's about SHK. I also wonder why do these Internet warriors always so itchy to compare SHK to SYJ? If you believe that SYJ is the best at everything than leave it that way, but doesn't seem so? To all the SYJ fans, if I think that she is untouchable, I wouldn't go compare another actress with her. Even if that actress is so untalented in my book. This mean that SHK is the untouchable one that's why everyone is so insecure about her.

    • LOL every shk fans always have the same childish mindset that “everybody is jealous of shk everybody is insecure of shk”. Please stop that.. and also what makes you think that shk fans dont compare syj w shk?

    • @Stitch I'm not SHK fan so whatever you say won't bother me. I'm just starting what I see so far from this poster Penny. LMAO why do all SYJ stands thinks that whoever make such counteract is a SHK fans. You said her stands all has childish mindset set but what yall don't see is you all are the same. It's just so pathetic seeing these two fan worshiper fight and compare both actress together all the times.

    • SHK is just polarizing, she's not untouchable. Untouchable would mean she ticks all boxes - popularity, talent, Hallyu and Chungmuro success, big hits, awards, reputation, etc... she barely checks off half of these. But most others don't hit them all either, although some hit more than others. So no one is untouchable. But if I'm a K actress there are other more impressive careers than hers.

    • @lolaylist When I said SHK is untouchable doesn't mean she is topnotch or is an awards winner I did? It's just for the smart people who think it's okay to degrade someone's abilities when they are as blind to see their actions. SHK don't have to ticks all the boxes you check in order to be topnotch because acting is just based on one's preference. You may not like her but others do and that's the same for SYJ. She is so good in the field and hit all the boxes you check but does it mean the whole world agreed that she is the best. No some might not find her untouchable as well. All these comparisons and degrading SHK is funny.