It is not exaggerated to say one of the keywords to describe 2023 would be ‘the performance of actresses’
2023 was full of acting projects by actresses. Starting with Song Hye-kyo with “The Glory”, actresses have been in charge of the small screen until the end of 2023. There were Jeon Do-yeon’s “Crash Course in Romance”, Lee Bo-young’s “Agency”, Uhm Jung-hwa’s “Doctor Cha”, Choi Soo-young & Jeon Hye-jin’s “Not Others”, Ra Mi-ran’s “The Good Bad Mother”, Kim Tae-ri’s “Revenant”, Kim Tae-hee & Im Ji-yeon’s “Lies Hidden in My Garden”, Cha Ye-rin & Jin Seo-yeon & Lee El’s “Battle for Happiness”, Suzy’s “Lee Doona!”, Park Eun-bin’s “Castaway Diva”, Lee Yoo-mi’s “Strong Girl Nam-soon”, “UEE’s “Live Your Own Life”, Park Bo-young’s “Daily Dose of Sunshine”, Lee Young-ae’s “Maestra”, etc.
It was “The Glory”, which premiered on December 30th, 2022, that opened the door to success for actresses in 2023. Through this series, not only Song Hye-kyo but also other actresses, such as Lim Ji-yeon, Cha Joo-young and Kim Hieora, also received keen attention. “The Glory” topped the survey of favorite dramas by Gallup Korea with 14.8% votes. In fact, there have been only 10 dramas that surpassed 10% in preference rate, proving the huge popularity of “The Glory”.
Following Song Hye-kyo, veteran actresses Jeon Do-yeon and Lee Bo-young also announced their comebacks with “Crash Course in Romance” and “Agency”. “Crash Course in Romance” achieved the highest viewer rating of 17% while “Agency” peaked at 16%. “Doctor Cha”, starring Uhm Jung-hwa, even recorded 18.5%.
The dominance of actresses in the first half of 2023 continued until the end of the year. “Revenant” with Kim Tae-ri’s excellent evil acting hit 11.2%, while Suzy, Park Eun-bin, Park Bo-young, and UEE created hot topics with their performances in “Doona!”, “Castaway Diva”, “Daily Dose of Sunshine” and “Live Your Own Life”. “Lies Hidden in My Garden”, “Battle for Happiness” and “Not Others” were successful in terms of both ratings and hot topics despite being broadcast on ENA.
In addition, Lee Young-ae will wrap up the performance of actresses in 2023. She is going to make a comeback with tvN’s new Sat-Sun series “Maestra”, which will premiere on December 9th. It’s a mystery drama about a female conductor facing the truth surrounding her by digging into mysterious incidents that happen in her orchestra while hiding her secret.
The emergence of “womance” trend, which highlights the friendship and solidarity of women, in the drama scene has further helped actresses showcase their diverse acting skills and transformations. The narratives are already creative and interesting, the actress’s portrayals of unique characters also enhance viewers’ watching experience. As such, expectations are high on whether actresses and female characters will continue to dominate 2024.
Source: Daum
