Main casting is now finalized and script reading will take place this week on January 8th at SBS studios in Yeouido for the K-adaptation of well known Chinese period novel Bu Bu Jing Xin (Startling with Each Step). The K-version will be called Moon Lovers is for sure going to headline Lee Jun Ki as the male lead, in the role that reinvigorated Nicky Wu‘s career, while singer-actress IU will take on the spunky young heroine, with a performance by Liu Shi Shi in the C-drama version that took her from rising actress to A-lister. The other male leads playing the various princes are Kang Ha Neul, Hong Jong Hyun, Baekhyun, Nam Joo Hyuk, and Ji Soo, with Ji Soo the only supporting male lead with a confirmed role in playing the youngest 14th prince.
This is a supremely flower boy cast if I ever saw one assembled, and truth be told the C-drama version got tons of flack when it was cast for not picking enough flower boys. All the male leads were questioned and raked through the coals by rabid fans of the novel – with Nicky and Kevin Cheng being derided as too told and no longer popular enough for leads 4 and 8, too many newbies in Lin Geng Xin and Ye Zhu Xin, and wrong casting of Han Dong and Yuan Hong as their respective princes rather than other princes. Frankly the C-drama BBJX casting outcry is way more intense than what’s going on with feedback to Moon Lovers, so imma sit back and just wait for this baby to arrive later this year before jumping to any conclusions.
Ji Soo is confirmed as maknae 14th Prince
IU is confirmed as female lead Ruo Xi
Lee Jun Ki is confimed as 4th Prince
As for the other princes, my guess is: Kang Ha Neul as 8th Prince, Hong Jong Hyun as 9th Prince, Baekhyun as 10th Prince, Nam Joo Hyuk as 13th Prince.
They start filming next week? So fast! I have no issue with the casting (unlike most), I like them all.
This is one hella flowerboy cast.
I thought kang ha neul a bit young to play 8, but he’s a good actor so i really don’t mind
Now i’m curious to see who played other characters, i.e. the king and other women
Nam Joo hyuk such a big role while Jisoo the 14th
I don’t know if IU can pull off Ruo Xi. She’s not so spunky and quietly intelligent like RX was. I hope she does well but I have my reservations
I actually don’t think Liu Shi Shi plays spunky well either, as it seems forced at times. She’s a natural in melo though, and that’s what most of the show required. Don’t know enough about IU to kniw if she’s good in melo though. Anyone?
Judging from her recent acting in You’re the Best Lee Soon Shin, Pretty Boy, and Producers, I think IU is adept enough to handle Ruo Xi’s character. She is probably the best idol actress to play this role.
Agree with Ann about IU. Yet she has to prove she can interpret such a subtle character. Roaxi is way more complicated than the roles she had ever played in K dramas. And a complex heroine is usually what’s expected of a C period drama.
she was great in You’re the Best Lee Soon Shin..it was kinda mellow at times…and she was super cute and weird in pretty man..She is awesome she will do great I think 🙂
Not a fan of IU’s acting. But she is cute. Will give it a chance for lee junki and kim ha neul.
I mean kang ha neul
in BBJX, the female lead character doesn’t end up with the male lead character right? which prince it is? so, IF… the korean remake make the end just the same as the chinese version, IU’character will likely end up with whom?
i am asking because i don’t know
The 14th, but it wasn’t out of love. He offered her another option if she could no longer bear to be with the 4th.
OMG I’m fine if her character ends up with Jisoo :D. He will finally get the girl. And I am thinking he will be stealing the scene from Lee Junki :P. Gotta prepare myself for second lead shipping.
Wow :0 .. intereesting.. so it’s gonna be jisoo?! how about the love line with the other princes? just a friend or like a ‘some’ relationship?
i am sorry if i am asking too much hehehe
do you know where i can read or get the book via internet?
omgee so Jisoo gets the girl?? ahhhhh finally!!! I love Joongi though..like I found out joongi was going to be lead and later that jisoo is also in it… ottokeh!!?? too many feels you guys!! lol ♥ I’m okay if she ends up with either of them…
She doesn’t end up with any of them. She ends up dying while waiting for 4th to come to her. She lives at 14ths house as a friend but legally has the title of wife.
Nobody will end up with her
Omonaa..what a crappy ending. I hope they will change the ending a bit. Most cdramas that I watch have dramatic ending, it’s like they don’t know how to make the audiences happy…”let’s kill the lead!”
Really? I didn’t remember that. I recall the emperor wanting to marry her off but I thought she forever remained without an official status so that the 4th can visit her whenever he wanted. I remember her jealous fit for his concubine and the scene with the visit of his wife. That could have been possible if she were someone’s wife?
@ aa, you better watch the C version of the drama. It should be on YT or viki.com with subs.
How I wish the female lead is Park Min Young. She just gives off that Liu Shi Shi vibe, especially after I’ve seen her in the ancient chinese garb in the mainland c-drama she participated in. IU is ok but I’m not sure she has the goods to deliver a nuanced performance.
Ditto. Plus I can imagine she’ll have an amazing chemistry with Lee Jun Ki.
I hate park min young. Not a fan of IU but wanna find out my feelings about this couple, even when I’m still a fan of jun ki-yu bi.
I know this is doomed when IU got casted. What an insult to the fans of the original work as well as the author! And at least cast someone on the same level as lee junki for the 8th prince!
Amen! I had hoped for Park Bo Young to be his leading lady.
I had hoped that IU would accept (IU is my bias)! Yes there probably could have been a better choice, but I like IU and I think this role will push her. I don’t like Kang Ha Neul as 8th Prince…… there is something that is just wrong about it. I would have preferred if Ji Soo and Nam Joo Hyuk characters were flipped.
Either way… this could have had an amazing cast with all a-class actors&actresses and still not live up to the original adaptation, in the end its because it will get that kdrama makeover….
IU is pretty girl. But when i watch her in drama, her mouth movement is very strange. I just cant see her as Ruo Xi. Park Bo Young could better. Just hope drama turns out good.
Hmm.. so my bet is:
Baekhyun 10th prince
Nam Joohyuk 13th Prince
Hong Jonghyun 8th Prince
Kang Haneul 9th Prince
At least Jisoo is the second male lead for the last few episodes. Lol.
Damn. I don’t know whether I should watch this or not. *sigh*
Ugh! IU and Ji Soo will make me give it a shot but the rest of the cast will probably make it too painful to continue. (I mean, Nam Joo Hyuk, really? I loved 13 sooooo much and now? Now??) *Sobs* The others will be bad enough, but if he really is cast as 13 then it will be a travesty!
I’m so excited to see everyone in this drama. I’ve seen all IU’s drama and I am certain enough that she’s a good actress rather than those who criticise her yet haven’t watched fully her shows. I love the IU-Jisoo pairing.
Yup..I have watched ALL her drama, that’s why I’m sure she will fit to this role.
In his recent drama,scholar who walks, leading lady Yu Bi and Lee Jun Ki did not have an ounce of chemistry. She looked like his younger sister then female lead. This new drama wont either with IU. He needs a bit mature woman like Shin Min Ah or Park Min Young. Darn it!!
Have you seen You’re the best lee soon shin? The pairing between IU and Jo Jung Suk so good, even there’s many JJS-IU shipper at that time (they have 13-year age difference). No awkward acting between them, and plus..IU created a beautiful duet song (JJS and IU) as a gift for the viewer for free. Also, KBS gives them award for best couple too. In the real drama (bbjx), the age gap between female and male lead is 17 years…I’m really sure, IU and Lee Jun Ki will have good chemistry too.. Don’t judge before you see the drama.. Give it a try.
The kiss in YTBLSS was so embarrassing and that had nothing to do with the age gap between the OTP. JJS looked as if he was kissing a lifeless “doll” with wide eyes; it seemed so disturbing that I had to change the channel. His kisses, on the other hand, with PBY in OMG were quite memorable and no bizarre whatsoever. Unfortunately, IU is nowhere near PBY’s level, acting-wise; so, it seems impossible for her to be able to “camouflage” her mediocre acting, especially in a period drama. However, I hope I’m wrong (with a little or big help from the PD)… for my Jun-ki’s sake, that is!
The role of IU in producers was just like real life of IU hence it fit her well. I thought her acting was very stiff in there so I don’t have high hopes? But Will give it a try to see if historical drama suits her well.
It’s probably not the matter of Jun Ki for lacking chemistry between OTP, but something to do with Yu Bi who’s not skilled enough as the female lead. As to IU, I’ll give her a shot based on her ace performance in the past. She nailed the roles in You’re the Best Lee Soon Shin and the Producers, in my opinion.
Well. I will be watching fer sure now that JiSoo will break my heart.
If only they could all dare to wear the pony tails!
I agree with Koala. Most of the commentators are already judging the drama before seeing it with their own eyes. Remember when IU got casted as Cindy in Producers before it got aired? Everyone said she wasn’t fit to be a bitch character then halfway the show especially the scene where she cried, Korean viewers gave positive feedback on her acting, and even some international viewers said they can’t imagine anyone to be Cindy except her ?
OK I’m gonna check this out just to watch IU and Jun Ki. Specifically Jun Ki ssi, don’t disappoint me. Since I was so turned off by Nicky Wu in the C version and skipped almost all the scenes of the 4th prince, I’ll have to make it up from Jun Ki’s screen time. I hope the production team will not confine themselves to very strict dress code of Sageuk without any imagination of being creative. This is a romantic fantasy drama. Costumes have to be at least pleasing to eyes. To be honest, a lot of costumes in K historical dramas are aesthetically lacking, specifically palace woman headpieces and hanboks. So please make sure the stylists do a comparable job to C period drama stylists.
I hope this is not considered a spoiler. To those who are curious about the plot of BBJX, it’s kinda excruciating experience from my perspective as a viewer who expect pure romance. But the C drama was executed pretty well and did not fall into cliche that’s often seen in K dramas. So you may expect some surprises throughout the series. You may be impressed without regret watching the drama but may also end up with great disappointment and piss off at the ending. It all depends on the writer and the PD who are pivotal in controlling the dynamics of this K adaption. I hope they did some creativity in the K adaption, not fully copycat the C original since the original story is so heart rending.
Gosh..I bet you never watch the drama until the end..
“JJS looked as if he was kissing a lifeless “doll” with wide eyes.” <– did we watched the same drama?
" it seemed so disturbing that I had to change the channel." <– so, actually, you didn't see it fully XD
For anyone who haven't watched You're the best lee soon shin, here's a link to spoiler ep 1 to ep 40 ( short mv).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AqU3Xi8Agg&sns=tw
There's many JJS IU moments there.
My guess is that the kdrama will have a very different feel to it. So I am not so worried about the cast living up to the respective c drama characters. I think my interest in it will be determined by the overall cohesiveness of the story.
I tried my best to watch the c version, but failed. I guess I’m skipping this one, sorry. even with multiple eye candies to excite me.
Not a fan of any actors in this drama.
I don’t find IU as terrible as most here are saying. I have my reservations about her being able to tackle this role but it is not a forgone conclusion that she will suck.
I think Kang Ha Neul will do well. I haven’t seen a bad performance from him yet. Ji Soo is like the ‘It’ wonder boy now, I can’t imagine him in saeguk because I am more used to seeing him in school uniform. Let’s see if wonder boy will meet everyone’s expectations or falter. I wish they picked someone stronger as 13th Prince because I really like the character. A pretty boy just won’t do.
Lee Jun Ki should warrant least worrying but it’s not the case. If he continues as he did in SWWTN, it would be painful to watch. Cringeworthy expressions and overacting. The character of 4th Prince needs a lot of nuance. I don’t get why people say LJK overacts to compensate for his co-stars’ lacking. I hope it won’t be the excuse again this time round. Visually, LJK and IU make an odd pair. But so did Liu Shi Shi and Nicky Wu. However, I don’t have much confidence in either LJK or IU acting well enough to be convincing. She’s too inexperienced and LJK seldom have chemistry with any of his co-stars, no matter how they looked.
Im so excited for this drama. Im going to watch this for sure and i dont intend to watch the c drama version as the picture will be old. I care about otp chemistry that is all. This will be great. The cast is perfect.
I think they should just remake the second season. The second season was also a good one, you know? Hahahahaha
why is LJK pick this drama? dont he know it going to flop like his last two? how many time he drama going to flop. till he stop picking drama were the lead actress is bad at acting. he need to do drama were he dont have to carry the show by himself cuz pople anit going to turn in if he the only one good at acting.
Can an actor pick his leading lady? It’s also quite ridiculous to blame all his leading ladies for his drama flops. Going by this reason, Producer should have flopped because IU was in it, Yong Pal should have flopped because Kim Tae Hee was in it and so on. I guess it’s all credit to Kim Soo Hyun and Joo Won for carrying those dramas all by themselves, which Jun Ki can’t.
Well honestly kim tae hee, cha tae hyun, and gong hyo jin are veteran actors
AIGOOOOOOOO… GRAM CHECK PLEASE
Hope they don’t butcher it… Kdrama butchered jdorama JIN and Boys Over Flower for me. Not a fan of acting-dol and I don’t know why they would make a remake of a drama that cast some of China’s A-Listers and fill them with acting-dol/non-A-listers (besides Lee Junki). I love Junki but I’m afraid his face isn’t stern enough to play my beloved 4th. We’ll see, hoping for the best.
I read pieces of the script. I can say that this drama will be the worst drama in korea. Shame…
I was absolutely devastated when i saw the news. i am forever invested in BBJX because it has a very special place in my heart. i feel like they are just putting actors who have huge fame to uplift the drama. i really do not want IU to be playing the role of RouXi. it’s such a heavy role and cannot be given to her. nonetheless i really hope they do a good job at it. korean audience probably dont even know the existence of BBJX and that’s what makes it worse .
TT.TT
This is a great cast and you can now add Seohyun of Snsd, if they could add Kim So Hyun like a princess it will be awesome.
IU in a lead role… with all the six good looking men… it’ll be fun to watch. Hope this is where she shines!
Why do people always say bad things about everything IU does? C’mon, give her a break. She’s not just an idol, she’s a real artist who tries everything to contribute well in Korean entertainment. I’m not Korean but I don’t think IU deserves all the hate she gets. She excels in every single thing she does, don’t you think that it’s proof enough that she got the quality and the caliber to be the artist you say she’s not.