Actor Typecasting: Boxing My Favorite Actors Into Convenient Categories

So many dramas, so little time. Along with all these dramas come my never-ending list of actor crushes. I would love to list them all down but that would probably take me about a week or so to write up. My love for all these actors knows no categorical limitations. I don't care if the actor is young or old, tall or short, with a background in musicals or the catwalk - all I need is sizzling onscreen charisma and I'm yours.

So here I attempt to group my favorite Korean actors into convenient categories. Let the sorting begin...

1. The Idol Actor - A lot of people cringe at the thought of all these idol stars making their way into Korean dramas and movies, but not all idol actors are bad news. There are several handful of idols who have given acting a shot with successful results. World Star Rain, himself, is an idol who has made quite a name for himself as an actor, not just in Chungmuro but in Hollywood as well. Following in his footsteps are some of today's hottest young stars, and my favorites have to be JYJ's Park Yoochun (Rooftop Prince, I Miss You), Big Bang's T.O.P (71: Into the Fire, Commitment), Beast's Lee Gi-kwang (My Friend Is Still Alive, Me Too Flower), and Seo In-guk (Reply 1997, The Master's Sun).

2. The Model Actor - Having models in our dramas is not a new thing. A lot of actors started out gracing catwalks and fashion spreads before hitting the screens. Stars like Cha Seung-won, Jo In-sung, Gong Yoo, and So Ji-sub first found success as models before being cast in dramas and movies. The trend of turning models into actors is far from over and the past few years has churned out quite a number of successful crossovers. And there's no point in guessing who my favorites are. It's quite easy. They're all of your favorites too, you see: Kim Woo-bin (School 2013, The Heirs), Lee Jong-suk (School 2013, I Hear Your Voice), Lee Soo-hyuk (White Christmas, What's Up), Hong Jong-hyun (Dating Agency: Cyrano, White Christmas), Sung Joon (Shut Up Flower Boy Band, I Need Romance 3), and Ahn Jae-hyun (You From Another Star).

3. The Ahjussi Actor - It doesn't matter how old they get, a hot man is a hot man is a hot man. It doesn't help either that most of these men have kept fit, if not fitter now than they were 10 years ago, and have quite the chocolate abs to prove it. And the wrinkles, I actually find sexy. Don't you think? I mean, take a look as some of my favorite ahjussis: Cha Seung-won (Greatest Love), Kim Seung-woo (Miss Ripley), Lee Beom-soo (Prime Minister and I), and Jung Woo-sung (Cold Eyes). There are several actors whom I love that I'm not quite sure falls under the ahjussi category quite yet (specially since I'm not a hormonal teenager but a rational adult, psych!) but would not be considered an oppa to a majority of k-pop fans. Actors like So Ji-sub (Always, The Master's Sun), Uhm Tae-woong (Architecture 101, Equator Man), or Choi Won-young (The Heirs) are not quite old enough for me to call ahjussi, but are not quite oppas either. But they're all gorgeous, nonetheless.

4. The Musical Actor - Loving music and loving dramas is one thing, but I'm also a huge fan of theater and Broadway musicals, and seeing all these actors in productions of Grease or Spring Awakening is just too much for my little fangirl heart. And I don't mean actors who eventually found their way into theater. I'm talking about actors who started out in theater but now have veritable drama and film careers, like Joo Won (Gaksital, Good Doctor), Jo Jung-suk (The King 2 Hearts, You're The Best Lee Soon-shin), Kang Ha-neul (Monstar, The Heirs), Lee Sun-kyun (Coffee Prince, Miss Korea), and Oh Man-seok (What's Up, The Vineyard Man).

5. The Jailbait Actor - Unfortunately, there are a handful of child actors who I love that are way too young for me to even be looking at. Even more unfortunate, for me, is that some of them really don't look their age. Take Yeo Jin-goo (I Miss You, Potato Star 2013QR3) for example. The kid is 16 years old but looks and sounds like a man in his 20's. There's no doubt that kid is going places. At 16, he's already romancing 23-year-old Ha Yeon-soo in their sitcom where he plays a 24-year-old web developer. Although, technically not jailbait anymore, these kids are still off limits: Yoo Seung-ho (Arang and the Magistrate, I Miss You), Lee Hyun-woo (To The Beautiful You), and that other Lee Min-ho (Rooftop Prince, Prime Minister and I).

Sharing a little more of Yeo Jin-goo just so y'all better understand my frustration over this kid. 

He's only 16 years old. I can't even.

I feel like I'm missing out on a bunch of other actors, but only because I couldn't find a category to fit them into. Actors like Park Ki-woong or No Min-woo or Kim Soo-hyun are not on this list. Maybe a new category should be made just for the likes of them? The Pretty Actor? But aren't they all?

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My Lists: 10 favorite idol-actors

I know it's been ages since my last post. I was down with a fever for a good week and that took away from quality online time. Heh. But anyway, I'm back now and thought it a perfect opportunity to write up another list.

There have been many casting news for new movies and dramas due out later this year to next year and, of course, a number of idols are being considered for big roles. What's a project without an idol-turned-actor up in the credits, right? While not all idol-actors are praiseworthy, there are certainly more than a handful of actors in your favorite dramas and movies who started out (and are still) idol stars. And for today's list, I'll be giving you my top 10 favorite idol-actors.

Yoon Eun-hye - I don't know much about Baby V.O.X but I do love me some Yoon Eun-hye. Though she got her fair share of criticism for her debut role as an actor in Goong, Yoon Eun-hye showed her detractors that she's actually got some acting chops in her follow up drama Coffee Prince. That drama, to this day, is still one of my all-time favorites and it put Yoon Eun-hye on my list of favorite actresses.

Eric Mun - Who doesn't love Shinhwa's leader, Eric? Not only is he tall, dark, and handsome, he's also such a charming guy with an insane sense of humor. Plus, the boy can act. One of my all-time favorite melodramas is the 2007 watch-it-and-weep Que Sera Sera where Eric played the lead role. That drama showed Eric in a totally different light, and boy was he legit in it.

Park Yoochun - This JYJ member is my favorite dorky actor. Sure, he's gorgeous and can do drama like a boss. But he's always especially adorable in those funny scenes where he's being a doofus. And this can be said for both rom-com Rooftop Prince and melodrama I Miss You.

T.O.P - A lot of people cringed every time Big Bang's TOP opened his mouth in action drama IRIS, myself included. But it's not entirely his fault that a lot of his lines were in English. While I have not loved TOP in any of his dramas yet, I was moved beyond tears by his performance in 71: Into the Fire. Even alongside big guns like Kwon Sang-woo, Cha Seung-won and Kim Seung-woo, TOP was able to hold his own and he totally stole that film.

Lee Seung-gi - I have not cried as much as I did while watching Lee Seung-gi's moving performance in The King 2 Hearts. This solo singer has done almost everything under the sun and he's been good at everything. He's a variety sweetheart, a CF king, and an actor to be reckoned with. While rom-com is his main game as an actor, it was the dramatic beats in his recent drama that knocked me off my socks.

Kim Dong-wan - There's just something about Kim Dong-wan that makes me wanna pet him and keep him in my pocket. And I don't just mean his size. Dong-wan, of Shinhwa fame, is insanely charismatic. Of the episodes of Cheer Up Mr. Kim that I've seen, Dong-wan has always shown such strong presence on screen and he always makes you want to root for him.

Jung Eun-ji - Who can even forget her character from Reply 1997? Eun-ji brought Siwon to life. With every stilted line delivery, every prolonged whine, every smirk directed at Yoon-jae, we all simultaneously fell in love with Siwon and A Pink's Eun-ji.

IU - I have a lot to say about how You're The Best Lee Soon Shin is turning out but none of them would be about terrible acting. Because, truth be told, the only good thing remaining about the show is its awesome cast. IU has been delivering well week after week, and her efforts are obvious and praiseworthy. P.S. I also loved her Pil-sook in Dream High.

Seo In-guk - Just as we could all relate to Eun-ji's fangirl character in Reply 1997, we also wanted a best friend like Yoon-jae. Sure, he was surly and broody, but he was also a gorgeous dork who was incredibly sweet to his best friends and brother. Seo In-guk continues to make us fall in love in this year's new Hong Sisters' drama Master's Sun.

UEE - I used to hate UEE, if only because I hated her character in You're Beautiful. But I guess you can call that effective acting. Hah. Later on, I fell in love with her in Ojakkyo Brothers and I haven't looked back since. It really helped that she had amazing on screen chemistry with Joo-won.

What about you? Who are your favorite idol-turned-actors?

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