The actress to replace IU in new K-drama: multiple prestigious awards and the darling of film critics
3 years after her last K-drama appearance, the award-winning actress Chun Woo Hee will finally return to the small screen and assume IU’s role in “Money Game”.
Famous idol-actress IU recently withdrew from the upcoming K-drama project “Money Game”, leaving fans with a lot of regrets. However, now that a new actress has been announced, netizens can’t help but be surprised at this familiar name.
In particular, the actress that will take up IU’s vacancy is none other than Chun Woo Hee. While Woo Hee is not as commercially successful as IU, she has received plenty of critical acclaim and won at prestigious ceremonies like the Blue Dragon Film Awards and the Grand Bell Awards.
Chun Woo Hee made her acting debut in 2004 with the film “Love, So Divine”, and then started to play minor roles in projects of famous director Bong Joon Ho, the man behind Oscar winner “Parasite”. In 2011, the actress exploded with fame after playing a rebellious yet iconic student in “Sunny”, and ever since has starred in various box office hits like “As One”, “26 Years”, “Threads Of Life”, and so on.
Her career took another huge surge in 2014, thanks to a role in the film “Han Gong Ju”. Inspired by the gang sexual assauly case Miryang of 2004, this project went on to become one of the most successful independent movies in the history of Korean cinema.
Throughout her career, Chun Woo Hee has acquired numerous prizes from the most prestigious awards ceremonies, having been crowned Best Leading Actress at all the big three awards ceremonies of Korea, including the 2014 Grand Bell and Blue Dragon, as well as the 2015 Baeksang. Her work “Han Gong Ju” was also named at various international film festivals, having won the Tiger Award at the 2014 International Film Festival Rotterdam; the Jury Prize, Critics’ Prize, and Audience Award at the 2014 Deauville Asian Film Festival; and the Golden star at the 2013 Marrakech International Film Festival.
As a result, Chun Woo Hee receives a large number of offers for high-budget films of all genres. All of her works will get popular, whether she plays a major or minor role. Another successful cinematic project of Chun Woo Hee would be the 2016 “The Wailing”, which received rave responses from international critics.
After the success of “Waiting For Rain” in 2021, the actres returned to the small screen as the female lead of “Anchor”. Here, she starred alongside award-winner Lee Hye Young, and delivered a spectacular thriller-psychological performance.
The movie revolves around Se Ra – a famous news anchor at the national broadcasting station YBC. Lee Hye Young played the role of Se Ra’s mother while the Baeksang-winning actor Shin Ha Kyun transforms into a mysterious therapist in the film.
However, despite the massive successes of her big screen projects, Chun Woo Hee hasn’t managed to make a lasting impression on the small screen. Throughout her 18 years in the industry, the actress has only starred in a total of 5 K-dramas.
Among these, the 2017 series “Argon” was her first leading role, while the 2019 slice-of-life “Be Melodramatic” has been her last. The latter work, where Chun Woo Hee starred alongside Jeon Yeo Bin and Han Ji Eun, was highly praised by critics, but unfortunately did poorly on the commercial side, with viewership ratings as low as 1%.
After 3 years, Chun Woo Hee is finally returning to the small screen, drawing high anticipations from the audience. The actress will replace IU in “Money Game”, which is adapted from 2 famous webtoons, “Money Game” and “Pie Game”. The series will tell the tale of characters at the end of their wits, who try to survive a deadly game to earn money.
According to director Han Jae Rim, “Money Game” will be full of cruel mind battles and constantly challenge societal morals. It will also be a star-studded drama with an impressive cast consisting of Ryu Jun Yeol, Park Jung Min, Park Hae Joon, Bae Sung Woo, Lee Joo Young, Lee Yul Eum, Moon Jung Hee, and Chun Woo Hee.
