“Playful Kiss” aired its first episode 8 years ago and became an international sensation. The drama itself drew okay ratings in South Korea but the drama was met with love internationally, it is one of the most watched kdramas.
“Playful Kiss” is probably many kdrama fans first drama or one of the first dramas; it was Kim Hyun Joong first leading role after the immensely successful hit “Boys Over Flowers.”
“Playful Kiss” cast has gone separate ways since the drama ended, but whatever happened to the cast? and how are they doing these days?
Today, I will be discussing what happened to “Playful Kiss” 8 years after the drama aired its first episode.
Kim Hyun Joong
Probably the most successful and the most controversial cast member on this list.
Kim Hyun Joong went on to release solo albums and lead dramas, he managed to establish a name for himself as a great actor and a great singer.
After “Playful Kiss” he focused on his music career, he released his solo debut, the EP Break Down, on June 7, 2011 it was a commercial success, he went on to perform in a concert in Japan and because it was such a big hit he signed with a Japanese agency Universal Music Japan in November 2011.
Shortly after that, he went on a tour of Japan, performing in seven cities.
At the end of the year, Kim won the award for Best Male Artist at the 2011 MAMA (Mnet Asian Music Awards).
In January 2012, he released his first Japanese single and it was a success it was certified gold in Japan. The song took the number one spot on the Oricon DVD Chart. This was the first time a South Korean artist had taken the number one spot.
In 2013 and 2014 he continued focusing on his Japanese music activities, releasing many tracks that were met with success; he also starred in a Korean variety show called “Barefooted Friends.”
In 2014, he broke free of his flower boy image on Korean TV and portrayed a rough character for his return to the small screen with “Inspiring Generation.” The drama was successful and was able to surpass the 10% rating mark which isn’t an easy feat for any Korean drama.
However, in August 2014 his life changed forever when it was revealed that his non-celebrity girlfriend filed assault charges against him claiming that he repeatedly beat her, causing bruises and broken ribs.
The story of the assault charges and the legal battle is very long and it’s a tale of he said she said, eventually, Ms. Choi (his ex-girlfriend) dropped some of the charges after he apologized to her.
He was fined around 5000$ for hitting her even though he claimed it happened while he was practicing martial arts and he didn’t intend on hurting her.
His legal battle with his ex-girlfriend happened around the same time he enlisted in the military.
He enlisted on May 12, 2015, and was discharged February 11, 2017. Through that period he frequented the court in a legal brutal battle with his girlfriend at the time.
In 2015 February, a news outlet claimed that they got back together and that Ms. Choi was pregnant with his child, Kim Hyun Joong claimed he hadn’t seen her since January 2015 when she told him she was pregnant.
There was even a custody battle over the child between them in 2016, it turns out there was no child to begin with and she was lying the whole time about being pregnant.
He had also filed a lawsuit for investment fraud against a Mr. Park (separate from his battle with his ex-girlfriend at the time), he had lent Mr. Park about 500,000$ for purposes of investment in building pensions but Mr. Park refused to return the money.
In 2017, shortly after he was discharged he drove under the influence and was fined for his DUI and his license was suspended as well.
Despite that, he went on to release the Japanese single album, re:wind. The album reached the number one spot on the Oricon album chart. He kept himself busy as he went on a 16-city Japanese tour.
In November, he released the EP Haze, his first Korean album in three years but it was met with little success.
In February 2018, the court battle was officially over. He had filed a lawsuit against her regarding compensation for damages due to manipulating parts of the messages between him and her.
She was fined around 4600$.
It wasn’t until July 2018 that it was revealed he would be returning to the small screen through KBS’s “When Time Stopped.” It will be a short drama of 12 episodes; his co-star is Ahn Ji Hyun.
The filming began back on August 1st and the drama plans to air its first episode on October 24th.
The drama is written and directed by an unknown director and writer but the anticipation for his return is high.
If it weren’t for his legal battle with his ex-girlfriend he would’ve probably still been one of the most successful Korean singer-actors but the fallout and the continuous updates of the lawsuits that he went through tarnished his reputation.
For now, it’s a waiting game. We’ll find out for sure if the Korean public gave up on him or not yet when his drama airs in October.
Jung So Min
It took Jung So Min a lot of hard work and time before she was able to become well-known in Korea. She starred in many kdramas and movies but they were met with poor ratings mostly before 2017.
2017 was a good year for her for many reasons. She starred in the hit KBS drama “Father is Strange.” The drama was able to cross the 30% ratings mark and became a sensation.
Jung So Min continued 2017 with another hit drama opposite Lee Min Ki in “Because This Is My First Life” which was directed by Park Joon Hwa who also directed 2018 hit drama “What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim.”
In January 2018, it was revealed that she had been dating “Father is Strange” co-star Lee Joon. They had begun dating back in October 2017 enjoying dates together. Lee Joon is now serving the military and doing well.
It was the first couple that confirmed they were dating in 2018; dispatch released many photos of them together.
She is coming back with “The Smile Has Left Your Eyes” opposite Seo In Guk, the drama will air its first episode this week.
Lee Tae Sung
Lee Tae Sung has played the second leading role but has sadly never been able to transition from second to first 8 years later.
In late 2012 it was revealed that he married a non-celebrity girlfriend and that they have a son together. The news was revealed suddenly and took fans by surprise; he was relatively younger than the average celebrities who get married when they’re in their 30s.
He enlisted for his mandatory military service on October 29, 2013. Since he was summoned suddenly, he was unable to have a wedding with his wife it was reported that they would hold a ceremony when he’s released.
He was discharged in July 2015, before his discharge it was revealed that he has filed for divorce from his wife which is 7 years his senior. The custody went to him, they had both agreed to get divorced.
He has also been active in musicals but unfortunately, was rushed to the hospital because of breathing problems in early 2017.
His latest drama was “Ms. Hammurabi,” he is one of the cast members of “Real Men 300.”
Hong Yoon Hwa
She is known as a comedian but also acts every once and a while in dramas.
Her most recent drama project was “Wok of Love” where she played one of the cooks.
She is now engaged to comedian Kim Min Ki who proposed to her in 2016 during the recording of the Chuseok special “Tomorrow’s King of First Pitch.”
She has been on a diet and made headlines for losing a lot of weight ahead of her wedding which is planned for this November. She lost around 50 pounds (51 kg), but revealed she needs to lose around 10-15 kg (22-33 pounds) to fit in her wedding dress.
Yoon Seung Ah
Yoon Seung Ah has been in many kdramas since “Playful Kiss.” She continued to play many supporting characters in various dramas such as “Moon Embracing the Sun” and “I Need Romance 3.” She is also active in movies as well.
She led her first drama “Ms. Panda and Mr. Hedgehog” back in 2012 opposite Donghae from Super Junior. And her most recent movie project was “Method” opposite Park Sung Woong which premiered back in 2017.
In 2012 she confirmed she was dating actor Kim Moo Yul, the two tied the knot back in April 2015. Her husband is known for his movie roles rather than drama roles.
She hasn’t been in any production in 2018 yet.
Lee Si Young
She was a supporting character in “Playful Kiss” but she went on to become famous and lead her own dramas.
She went on to lead many good dramas such as “Valid Love,” “Golden Cross” and “Lookout.”
Besides being an amazing actress she is also a champion level female amateur boxer.
She gained a lot of attention for revealing she was pregnant after her drama “Lookout” wrapped up. She was dating a non-celebrity and announced that she would be getting married to him.
Her husband, Jo Seung Hyun is a businessman who works in the restaurant industry.
In October 2017, they held their wedding ceremony and she welcomed her first child, a boy in January 2018.
She recently came back with “Risky Romance” which concluded its run a couple of weeks ago.
