Kim Myung-min has done melodrama, thriller, sageuk, comedy, sageuk comedy, action, mystery — so now it’s time to take on the disaster genre. He has wrapped filming on his latest movie, Pace Maker, and signed on to star in a movie that I dearly hope adopts a cooler English-language title than its literal translation of Hairworm [연가시].

The movie is about the hairworm parasite, which lives by burrowing into the bodies of insects, emerging from their hosts once grown. Apparently it can even force the hosts to behave unnaturally, like throwing themselves into water. It’s like Alien for the buggy set. *Shudders.* In the movie, the hairworm begins to attack people, who start dying one by one for seemingly no reason, and Kim Myung-min plays a pharmaceutical company salesman who fights to save his family.

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Read the rest of Kim Myung-min wraps marathon movie, chooses disaster next (247 words)

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Post tags: Ahn Sung-ki, Go Ara, Kim Myung-min

Go Ara has been cast as the female lead in a movie, which I was generally pleased to hear…until I saw who her co-stars are: Kim Myung-min and Ahn Sung-ki. Eeeeee. Oh man, is she gonna be crushed.

It’s not that she’s a bad actress (although, erm, she kind of is — she’s gorgeous and she can cry on cue, but she has no connection with the camera and therefore feels very flat), but that those two men are just about the two best actors in Korea today. (Or, at least, two of the best in a very select group of A-listers.) Ara’s a lightweight on her own terms, but against those two, she’ll all but flutter away.

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Read the rest of Go Ara romances… Kim Myung-min?!? (216 words)

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Post tags: Go Ara, Kim Myung-min

Honestly, this has to suck for Heading to the Ground: Not only did MBC already cut the broadcast down by several episodes due to poor ratings, it has made an additional cut. What seems worse (to me) is the way in which they approached the matter, because viewers found out from a notice that ran after this Thursday’s episode that read, “The last episode will air next Wednesday.” Viewers were surprised to have the show end earlier than expected; this means there’s only one more episode, and MBC will broadcast a foreign documentary on Thursday.

The soccer drama starring idol star U-Know Yunho in his acting debut was initially supposed to wrap on November 12 with Episode 20. After two episodes were shaved from the series and one episode was postponed due to sports, the Episode 17 finale was moved up to November 5 to allow Hero to premiere a week earlier than scheduled. With the additional cut, the drama will now end on November 4 with Episode 16.

Heading to the Ground got off to a rough start with criticism for its star’s weak acting, which was followed by a slew of complaints over its confusing storyline that had nothing to do with the drama’s purported theme of soccer. Its ratings lagged in the 3%-4% range, and when competitor drama IRIS came along it drove a nail into the coffin; right after IRIS‘s 25% premiere, MBC announced the first cut to Heading. You’re Beautiful has held steady with 9%-10% ratings; Heading‘s most recent episode drew a 3.7%.

I get that Heading is not performing well, and it sounds like it’s riddled with flaws, but I do wish MBC would take more care with its underperforming series. A show may be subpar, but these last-minute scheduling changes only handicap the series further, and thus never gives it the chance to be the best version of itself. Then again, sounds like Heading may just need to be put out of its misery.

Via Segye

 
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Post tags: drama ratings, Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, U-Know Yunho

Heading to the Ground is nearing its air date, and held its production press conference on the afternoon of September 2 at Seoul’s Hyatt Hotel. The MBC series stars U-Know Yunho (aka Jung Yun-ho) in his acting debut, along with Go Ara, Lee Yoon-ji, and Lee Sang-yoon.

Man, these dramas premiere and end in such quick succession that it’s hard keeping track of the latest, isn’t it? The horror series Hon is about to hand off its Wednesday-Thursday timeslot to the new soccer drama, after it finishes with its tenth episode this week.

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Read the rest of Heading to the Ground’s press conference day (175 words)

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Post tags: Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, Lee Sang-yoon, Lee Yoon-ji, press conferences, U-Know Yunho

The MBC soccer drama Heading to the Ground [맨땅에 헤딩] recently released its first stills from the set, and follows with these latest shots of the two leads on a romantic date.

The scene shows Jung Yun-ho and Go Ara‘s characters — a humble soccer player and a rich team owner’s daughter — walking by an outdoor fountain. In the drama, Ara plays a young agent who recognizes his athletic talent, but loses in her attempt to convince him to her side. As a result, she drinks a large amount of alcohol despite not being much of a drinker, and becomes tipsy.

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Read the rest of Yun-ho and Ara’s romantic (drama) date (78 words)

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Post tags: Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, U-Know Yunho

MBC’s Heading to the Ground is still in the early stages of filming, and the production has now released stills of the drama’s recent rainy-day shoot.

The scene features the show’s star Jung Yun-ho (U-Know Yunho), who trades in his idol polish for a humbler image as he films this scene standing barefoot in the rain. While he gets soaked as he drags his pojangmacha food cart along, co-star and love interest Go Ara remains dry.

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Read the rest of First stills from Heading to the Ground (123 words)

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Post tags: Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, U-Know Yunho

Don’t call him U-Know Yunho anymore; the DBSK idol star wants to be known under his real name, Jung Yun-ho, as he takes on the lead role — and his acting debut — in the MBC soccer drama Heading to the Ground [맨땅에 헤딩].

(Not that this is new; lots of singers using stage names have switched to their real names for film and drama roles, seeking a more serious image as legitimate actors. The most famous example is probably Rain, who acts under the name Jung Ji-hoon.)

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Read the rest of Filming begins on Heading to the Ground (331 words)

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Post tags: Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, Lee Yoon-ji, U-Know Yunho

With casting complete, production is proceeding for MBC’s soccer drama Heading to the Ground [맨땅에 헤딩], which recently held its first script reading in Ilsan, Kyunggi province.

Among the actors present were the drama’s lead star U-Know Yunho of idol band Dong Bang Shin Ki, who had just arrived from a trip to Japan, as well as Go Ara (Who Are You), Lee Yoon-ji (Pure 19), and Lee Sang-yoon (I Love You, Don’t Cry).

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Read the rest of Heading to the Ground holds first script reading (133 words)

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Post tags: Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, Lee Sang-yoon, Lee Yoon-ji, U-Know Yunho

Nineteen-year-old Go Ara (Who Are You) is taking on not just one, but two new drama roles. One has already been announced, which pits her opposite U-Know Yunho in the soccer drama Heading to the Ground.

The other is the Japanese series Karei naru Spy, which just began airing on July 18 and stars Nagase Tomoya and Fukada Kyoko. She’ll appear in the third episode, which airs on August 1, playing a Korean actress who connects with Nagase Tomoya, a swindler-turned-government spy, and talks with him about his painful past. She has already filmed the episode, which marks her Japanese television debut.

Meanwhile, Heading to the Ground features Ara as a sports agent and premieres on September 9.

Via Yonhap News

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Post tags: Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, j-doramas

Ha! Just days after refuting the rumors, it has been announced that 23-year-old DBSK singer U-Know Yunho is indeed making his acting debut in the soccer drama Heading to the Ground [맨땅에 헤딩].

The singer, born Jung Yun-ho, takes on the character of “Cha Bong-kun,” a role recently vacated by Kim Rae-won because of Kim’s mandatory army obligation. To achieve the impossible goal of making it as a national player, the character pours all his passion into realizing the dream. While he “has nothing to his name, the drama tells the miraculous success story of passionate soccer player Cha Bong-kun.”

U-Know Yunho said of the role, “I really like the character of Cha Bong-kun. Reading the script, my heart overflowed with emotion. I want to act that feeling with sincerity.”

Heading to the Ground follows the Wednesday-Thursday horror drama Hon on MBC and premieres on September 9. No confirmation yet on the casting of his love interest, although Go Ara remains in contention

Via My Daily, Newsis

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• Soccer drama seeks its lead couple
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Post tags: Go Ara, Heading to the Ground, U-Know Yunho