After establishing their name in the Kpop industry, many Kpop idols will start to try their hands at acting.
A trend extremely prevalent in the Kpop industry is that many Kpop idols try to break into acting as well. This often happens after said Kpop idols earned a decent amount of popularity, and have a fanbase to support their acting activities.
Compared to pure actors whose major career is to act, the general public tend to expect less of Kpop idols, and so would allow a lower skill level in “idols-turned-actors”. Fans, on the other hand, are much more lenient on their favorites, regardless of the level of skills.
Explaining why Kpop idols would want to turn to acting, netizens on the Korean forum “Instiz” pointed out the element of longevity. According to them, idols can only work for a few years and have a brief peak, while actors can act forever, even in old age, and never fall out of the limelight. Compared to the Kpop industry where new groups continuously appear and old groups can get “replaced”, being an actor just promises way longer-lasting popularity and prestige.
Another reason explained by Korean netizens is that in general, actors are held in higher regard than Kpop idols. In fact, there is even this “prestige pyramid” in the Korean entertainment industry, where Kpop idols are near the bottom, and actors are at the top.
“Just look at the difference in treatment between idols and actors at awards ceremony”, one commented, followed by various agreements like “There are ranks among celebrities”, “People in the industry respect actors way more than idols”, and “Being an actor brings way better benefits”.
Finally, being an actor brings better work-life balance and more breaks, people said, pointing out that idols need to constantly attend schedules and interact with fans, while actors and actresses can retain their fame with about 1-2 works a year.
True to the trend, at the moment, numerous 2nd-generation idols have already cemented their standing in the acting industry, with notable names being SNSD’s Yoona and Seohyun; Super Junior’s Siwon, etc. In fact, some K-drama fans are even surprised to learn that Yoona and Seohyun came from an idol group, proving that the two are now more well-known for their acting.
Source: instiz
