[HanCinema's Feature] HanCinema's Top 5 Actors for December 2022

Fifth place for the tracking period of November 25th to December 22nd is a familiar enough name- Ji Chang-wook.

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Most recently, Ji Chang-wook appeared in "If You Wish Upon Me" which ended on September 29th. That drama was not especially popular. But Ji Chang-wook was confirmed shortly thereafter to appear in the drug-themed mystery "The Worst of Evil" on Disney+ next year. November 30th saw the release of that drama's first stills- hence the boost on interest.

Fourth place went to Lee Sung-min, an older actor than is usually popular on HanCinema. But for good reason- he plays the villain of "Reborn Rich" which has been a hugely popular drama over this time period, both in South Korea and elsewhere. Interestingly, despite playing an evil corporate grandfather who's implied to be in his sixties or seventies, Lee Sung-min is actually only fifty-four years old. A lot of his elderly gravitas really is just strong acting.

Third place went to Moon Sang-min, another actor with a less well-known name than the headliner. In this case, he's the leading prince in "Under the Queen's Umbrella" which focuses on pedagogy in the context of royal succession disputes. "Under the Queen's Umbrella" is another exceptionally popular drama, so it stands to reason that HanCinema readers would be interested in its lesser known performers. "Under the Queen's Umbrella" is only Moon Sang-min's third credited role, so the twenty-two year old actor is off to a strong start.

 

Second place went to Ju Seong-hyuk, and there's no denying it, at this point the most popular actors on HanCinema for December get to be a bit...obscure. Ju Seong-hyuk only has one credited appearance. He plays Milk in the recent Boys' Love romance "Choco Milk Shake" on YouTube. Evidently the fan favorite of the gay romance, HanCinema (and everyone else for that matter) has almost no information about Ju Seong-hyuk aside from his headshot. We don't know his birthday, or if he has any upcoming projects. But take heart, Ju Seong-hyuk, evidently you have a lot of overseas fans if nothing else.

First place, though, I can't even really guess why this guy is popular all of a sudden. Hwang Chang-young is a voice actor. You haven't seen him in anything. You probably haven't even heard him in very much. He only has three credits, two of which were for children's movies which most people don't see in their original language internationally. Hwang Cheong-young also shows up in "Beauty Water" in an unnamed role, which is only slightly better. Why Hwang Cheong-young was the most popular actor on HanCinema from December 8th to December 18th is quite beyond me. I'm going to guess that robots had something to do with it.

Written by William Schwartz