Rising stars who gained recognition through OTT & web dramas (Joo Hyun Young, Choi Hyun Wook, etc.)

These actors entered TV dramas after building their own filmography and accumulating experience through OTT and web series.

Many actors, who made their name known to the public with small and supporting roles on OTT and Youtube works, are already leading dramas on terrestrial channels. 

“SKY Castle” Kim Hye Yoon, “Nevertheless” Yang Hye Ji and “Penthouse” Kim Young Dae all appeared in a web drama by WhyNot Media during their debut days. In particular, “Secret Crushes”, starring Kim Hye Yoon and Yang Hye Ji, became the first web drama to surpass 100 million views. 

Later, WhyNot Media produced more web series and cast various rookie actors. 

Kang Yoo Seok recently impressed viewers with his acting in Netflix’s “Black Knight”, which ranked 2nd in Netflix’s worldwide ranking within 24 hours of its release. 

Playing small characters in SBS’s “Dr. Romantic 2” and tvN’s “Start Up”, he received his first lead role in the 2021 series “Light on Me”. In this work, Kang Yoo Seok portrayed Noh Shin Woo, the vice president of the school’s council who looks cold but has a warm heart. 

After making his face known to the public through “Light on Me”, Kang Yoo Seok grew into a leading actor and gained recognition for his solid acting skills through his first terrestrial drama debut, SBS’s “Payback”.

Choi Hyun Wook is also a promising star worth paying attention to. He debuted through the web drama “Real: Time: Love” and received favorable reviews from MZ viewers for his portrayal of Moon Ye Chan. He continued leading the series until Season 4 and rapidly emerged as a rising actor among teenagers.

After “Real: Time: Love” ended, Choi Hyun Wook participated in various notable projects, such as SBS’s “Racket Boys”, tvN’s “Twenty-five Twenty-one”, and Wavve’s original series “Weak Hero Class 1”. In addition, he appeared in the music video “Ditto” of the popular girl group NewJeans, making his name further known among the public.

Starring Choi Hyun Wook, tvN’s upcoming series “Sparkling Watermelon” and U+Mobile TV web drama “Hi Cookie” will be released soon.

Bae In Hyuk and Joo Hyun Young are also proving their wide acting spectrum after gaining popularity. The two are scheduled to work together in MBC’s drama “The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract”. In fact, these two are also stars discovered by WhyNot Media. 

Bae In Hyuk digested the fantasy genre by appearing in the web drama “Kiss Goblin”.

Joo Hyun Young appeared in seasons 1, 2 and 3 of the web drama “Best Mistake”. She added fun to the work by playing the role of Ahn Yu Na with her unique acting.

Those who have established themselves as actors are also active in the small screen. Bae In Hyuk starred in tvN’s “My Roommate Is a Gumiho”, SBS’ “Why Her” and “Cheer Up.

Joo Hyun Young is building solid filmography such as ENA’s “Extraordinary Attorney Woo” and tvN’s “Behind Every Star” after properly proving her presence by exploding her accumulated acting skills in Coupang Play’s “SNL Korea”.

Lee Jong Hyuk and Yoo Jung Hoo were selected for the lead roles in Wavve and Netflix’s “Bitch X Rich”.

Lee Jong Hyuk and Yoo Jung Hoo, who played male leads in “Bitch X Rich”, which was released on Wavve and Netflix from May, first met the public through web dramas as well.

Lee Jong Hyuk made his face known through the web drama “User Not Found”, which topped Abema TV (Japan)’s Hallyu drama viewership ranking and is still ranking first in terms of cumulative views in the Hallyu category.

After that, he appeared in the BL drama “Our Dating Sim”, which topped Naver Series On’s monthly broadcasting category.

Yoo Jung Hoo, who appeared in the web drama “Bad Girlfriend”, participated in writer Im Sung Han’s TV Chosun Saturday-Sunday drama “Mrs. Durian”.

Source: Wikitree