Han Hyo Joo 한효주 - [FIN: Happiness (2021) || NEXT: ThePirates: Goblin Flag (Jan 2022)]

[eLizza]

Hey guysss...I will start with a little bit of intro..

So I started my drama journey 2  years ago and W two worlds was my 2nd Kdrama. So far I have managed to watch 65-70 kdramas but still it is one of my favourite.. It was awesome......and I quickly fell in love with HHJ.. Untill a few months ago,I seldom indulged myself in knowing about celebs personal lives and nor was I active on social media.. However I heavily relied on Wikipedia and other review sites to get recommendations.. After watching HHJ in W two worlds I was enchanted by her and took a glance at her filmography and watched many of her projects..both dramas as well as movies. Ohh ghoshh..she always manages to surprise me. I m in awe with her charisma, style and talent.  She is the first Korean actress whom I liked so much and she holds a special place in my heart . Recently..I became a SYJ stan as well..and you know what ??I find so many similarities between them . Both the actresses are fearless when choosing work and have acted in various genre starting from a young age. They always take the challenge and do not choose the easy route. Most importantly they let their talent speak for themselves rather than involving in mediaplay or extensive PR.

HHJ is one of the few actress who gave blockbusters both in dramaland and Chungmuro.. I have got mad respect for her as an actress.. In her late teens and early 20s she gave multiple blockbuster dramas touching over 45 pc , 30 pc marks. Girl even got a Baeksang award for Dong Yi earning so much accolades. However at the mere age of 23 , she left dramaland and focused on Chungmuro .. I mean wow....who does that at the peak of her career??. It is my personal opinion though..but I believe had she stayed in dramaland then, she could have easily competed with veterans like SHK ,JJH in terms of popularity.. Heck she could have even surpassed them. (my assumption though.. don't take it as a fac).

Just look at the number of blockbusters in her short drama career. Girl has the potential and good acting chops too and hence it is not impossible..

However being a Chungmuro queen is even more respectable.And as her fan, I m glad of her choices. I saw a list once of top 5 actresses for the ticket power index where HHJ was the youngest one. ..

 

I do miss her in dramaland as in the last 10 years she did only one drama..So out of my 65-70 dramas.. my top 3 includes 2 HHJ dramas. One is ofcourse W:two worlds . And the other one is Shining Inheritance....  Sorry but out of the two..I like Shining Inheritance more.. Han Hyo Joo showed such a fabulous acting there even when she was so young. That show despite having lack of star power became a National drama. HJ truly flexed her acting muscles. I have watched it multiple times.

 Ohh I was talking about similarities with YJ...,even she was a part of the Endless Love Series for Summer Scent, whereas HJ did Spring Waltz..

And now HJ will be starring in Pirates 2 ... Can I be more happier.??

Also on a lighter note, both SYJ and HHJ were caught grocery shopping with their co-star.....(Disclaimer: I don't ship HHJ with anyone but will be happy whoever she chooses).

 

However i really want to know her as a person cause I have a fair share of knowledge about her works only and nothing more.. Hence I will read contents from this forum and gather as much crumbs that I can digest..

I just hope all her future projects become super successful....

SORRY FOR SUCH A LONG POST...Anyways..babye 

[frozentundra]

Welcome, @eLizza! I really love those two dramas, too, they are always in my top favorites (W and Shining Inheritance). 

 

I admire a lot of people's talents and works, but what impresses me about someone enough to become their actual fan is their character--how do they treat other humans? (ie not only the people they need to impress, but those they have no reason to impress) How do they react to success? (ie do they keep growing and challenging themselves or think they know everything already?) How do they handle challenges and conflict? (because it happens to everyone; do you get mad and throw a fit, or do you seek peaceful ways and somehow manage to keep going?) She's one of the handful of artists I consider myself an actual fan of. I know for sure I will get an excellent performance that will make me really feel for the character (and every character is so different!!). Plus I really admire the way she manages to be both a good artist and a decent human. I'm really looking forward to Pirates 2!

[eLizza]

Yes yes.. @frozentundra I agree with you.We may like many people's work but can't become a fan of everyone.

Even I don't stan a person quickly and only after getting good vibes , I become invested in them. That's why eventhough there are many successful and popular actresses ,I identify myself as a fan of only two. I don't even follow celebrities from my country even if I enjoy their works...

Although I don't know much about HHJ as a person but have heard many positive opinions from other people. Infact when she recieved her award for Shining inheritance, poor girl was fumbling, speechless and ended up wiping her tears meanwhile thanking all those people that mattered to her including her family members.. I knew it after watching that video that she is a humble being. Till now I have very limited knowledge about her real life but will try to know more....

And yeah I think Pirates 2 will be great as I enjoyed the first one as well.Plus this time the cast is also A+ .Just hope there are lots of entertaining as well as action scenes. And comeon who could be better than HJ for action roles..

 

[frozentundra]

@eLizza she has definitely earned her way in action! Also, the first film had a lot of comedy. I love HJ's heartfelt, moving scenes, too, she always makes me cry, but she actually is also good at comedy and it would be nice to see more of it. 

 

And she just strikes me as a nice person. Like, both for her considerable acting abilities and for the way I've observed her treat others, she must be really fun to work with as a fellow cast member. A humble person, yes, who doesn't like conflict, who is an introvert but who is quite warm and friendly as well. I read a blog post on Naver not long back where a television announcer was remembering an experience he had with her long ago. It was some kind of promotional or fan signing event or something, and he was supposed to introduce her. When he came out, everyone just stared at him like he was "a penguin from the Arctic wasteland" or something like that. Just a cold feeling in the room. So he introduced her and she came out and greeted him like he was an old friend, presenting him to the crowd. And with that kind of welcome and connection, suddenly the crowd embraced him as well. He never forgot that, and he tries to use that principle now when introducing people. 

 

I don't work in the acting/entertainment field but I do work in one with a lot of parallels, and I have seen many people go from nobodies to successes. And it's always interesting to see how success goes to some people's heads, and not others. Also, everyone has down times as well. How do they handle the challenges? Having seen many people go through this kind of thing, the good ones really stick out to me. So yeah, I'm definitely cheering her on from my little corner of the world!

[eLizza]

@frozentundra..thanks for mentioning that sweet incident.. I believe she is a warm person and can make everyone comfortable around her .(Watched lots of BTS he ! he !).. 

It is quite commendable that she achieved her success from scratch and still remains so humble. I guess these characteristics are inherent for some people . And our HHJ is actually a fighter, never afraid to take challenges....

I just love her acceptance speeches in award shows.. She really feels gratefull towards the people who helped her reach this platform. And yeah we will keep on supporting her..

Btw.. it has been a long time since I got to gush about Shining Inheritance ..Hope it doesn't sound off-topic.. First of all Hwan-Sung couple are one of the cutest pair in entire kdrama land without being cringy for even a split second...I just loved their connection.. .. (Sorry Kang Chul-Oh Yeon Joo  OTP , I love you too but I prefer Hwan-Sung more , especially their sweet banters). Honestly I have been desperately waiting for her collaboration with Lee Seung Gi again and want to witness that magic of a chemistry as both are of same age, quite comfortable and now are in their early 30s so more mature roles. Guess what ?? An action drama will be the best for them.... Even Lee Seung Gi once said in an interview that he would like to work with HHJ again...

Other-costars with whom I want to see her work with are Park Seo Jun(awwww..Beauty Inside) , Kim Soo Hyun, Hyun Bin, Jo In Sung , etc. to name a few.

Okay back to Shining Inheritance..

Have you heard about the term "Drama Grudge" .It is like when you get too involved with a character meanwhile hating her/him so much so that you can't seem to focus on her future projects by not being able to separate her from previous role.. I know this sounds super childish and we need to move on.. But I m guilty of having this one grudge..

I hated the character of the step-sister in Brilliant Legacy so much..goshhh. How could she treat her sister so bad when all she got was sacrifice and generosity from her sister's side .. Moon Chae Won is a great actress but I just can't shed off her image from my mind as Yoo Seung Mi and follow her projects..(Side effects of watching SI multiple times?? ).

I never dared watching her movie with LSG cause I couldn't digest Hwan to leave Eun Sung and be with Seung Mi..Petty me ..I know...but but I managed to watch LSG opposite other actresses with Yoo Seung Mi..Oops I mean Moon Chae Won being an exception.. It has been a while since then  and I will try to watch her new drama though which will  release in July. Just hope I get away with my drama grudge and stop feeling guilty over this matter.

Again sorry for my long post ..just missed Shining Inheritance and specially Han Hyo Joo.

 

[frozentundra]

@eLizza I hadn't known that MCW had a movie with LSG, I hope her character was a bit happier than poor Seung Mi!

 

The writing in Brilliant Legacy was well, brilliant. You can see it as a drama with Go Eun Sung as the main character who succeeds over her evil stepmother, OR you can see it as a tragedy where the stepmother is the main character, endlessly working towards her goal, endlessly presented with a series of choices that will let her change course, and yet...always picking the bad ones until she is to a point where she can't reverse and back out of it. I know people usually think of romance when you say chemistry, but a good chemistry between your protagonist and antagonist is important, too. And they have excellent chemistry there, where they each know which buttons to push and which ones they can't. They just played off of each other so well. Meanwhile, Seung Mi was caught in the middle. I don't think she wanted to be a bad person, but she was sort of stuck with her mom and had NO ONE else. Eun Sung had her best friend, she had the halmoni, she had all the people she worked with, she had the faithful second lead and of course also won over Hwan. I hated the stepmom, but I just felt very sorry for Seung Mi. 

 

But yeah...sometimes a character will make such an impression that it's hard to fully shake that feeling. Choi Jung Woo was such a good guy in Master's Sun that I can never quite believe he's evil or at least ambivalent in other dramas. On the other hand, it's taken me a LONG time to not instantly tense up when I see Park Won Sang (the evil assemblyman in W), lol. He's played some very softhearted and even comically dumb characters, but he was simply SO CREEPY in W that it made a deep impression.

[eLizza]

@frozentundra.. Yess LSG had a movie with her. A rom-com one where he was chasing after her trying to win her love in a pitiful way. I just couldn't watch it after reading the plotline.

 

Anyways.. Brilliant Legacy is actually brilliant.. You can feel the angst, pain, betrayal..full on makjang but still with a dangling hope of winning over the evil.. Especially the bgm is so  endearing that it adds another flavour to the drama bringing out the raw emotions. As for  osts , " The Person Living in My Heart" is one of my all time fav and I can't just help but play it on repeat mode." Crazy in Love" is good too . I do agree with ur stance that Eun Sung had lots of support but Seung Mi only had her mother. And she was just caught in between  cause her mother was the root problem. I hated the mother too but it is just that she was always sly from the beginning but the character change within Seung Mi horrified me. She is a grown up and smart girl so she should know the consequences of her deeds. I know she was blinded by her greed for Hwan and it was the ultimate lesson for her. But still how can she stop her father from  meeting Eun Sung. I think I got more frustrated cause I thought that with each succeeding episode ,she will change ,stop supporting her mother and redeem herself...but it got worse and totally opposite to my expectations. ..Atleast her mother accepted her unlikeliness towards Eun Sung with a straight face within the first few episodes. But Seung Mi still pretended to be nice infront of her untill everything was blown up.. However I do pity her that circumstances made her the way she became. But still I can't digest the wrong deeds she did along with her mother.

The actor portraying Park Jun Se's dad played a nasty character for most part in SI but he was a good guy in Master's sun. And I agree that he plays ambivalent characters ,for example Doctor Stranger.

Oops seems like it is going off-topic..But I enjoyed reading ur insights.

 

[frozentundra]

@eLizza It's nice to talk about good dramas.  

[Lmangla]

alert ~ in case chingus haven't noticed, there is a han hyo joo theme badge available in the members shop!!!! check it out! buy it using your soompi points to proudly display on your profile!

[eLizza]

https://www.allkpop.com/article/2020/07/former-drama-co-stars-han-hyo-joo-lee-seung-gi-to-reunite-on-tvns-hometown-flex

Is this true????

..

Oh goddddd....I have been waiting for their re-union so badly...

I  expressed in my last post that I want them to work together again..just can't be more grateful with this news.

Although this time it is a variety show..Just hope somebody cast them in a drama soon

Will be definitely checking this episode..

PS: Aww ..If I m not wrong this will be her first project in Korea after wrapping up her overseas venture.

[frozentundra]

I always verify anything I see in AllKpop. But here is an article on Daum as well: https://entertain.v.daum.net/v/20200716165107397 It says that they will be filming the episode next week and airing in August. (The show comes on at 10:50 pm Sunday nights on tvN if you have access.) 

 

I guess the week after that she starts filming Pirates 2? They said "end of July" and there's no more July after that, so...? 

 

I'm still hoping for a return to Running Man at some point, too (there is the Kwang Soo/RM/Pirates connection...)

[adeleyam]

Can’t wait to see their collaboration again! Not to also mention, reunion with Cha Tae Hyun, Yoo Ho Jin PD as well as Lee Bum Soo who was her co-star in Beauty Inside.. 
She will be busy filming for this from next week onwards and for Pirates 2 the week after that I supposed..

 

[strongtower]

Cant wait for her guesting in HomeFlex

Welcome @eLizza!

am glad to see u in this thread as well. Fellow BinJin here. Lol

 

am not sure if I have signed up in this thread. But I have been a fan of HHJ since brilliant legacy days. Loved her all the more in w two worlds beauty inside etc.

my fave must be her 2d1n guesting. She introduced me to that show. Very beautiful actress.

[adeleyam]

Han Hyo Joo To Reunite With Former Co-Star Lee Seung Gi On Variety Show “Hometown Flex”


By L.Kim | Soompi

 

Han Hyo Joo will be making a guest appearance on Lee Seung Gi’s variety show!

 

On June 16, tvN’s variety show “Hometown Flex” shared, “Han Hyo Joo will appear as a guest in the Cheongju episode.”

 

“Hometown Flex” is a variety program that follows Lee Seung Gi and Cha Tae Hyun around various cities in Korea as they meet up with celebrities who grew up there to help introduce them to the area.

 

Han Hyo Joo and Lee Seung Gi acted together in the 2009 drama “Shining Inheritance.” It has been 11 years since the drama, and this is the first time they will be reuniting on a show.

 

“Hometown Flex” airs on Sundays at 10:50 p.m. KST.

[eLizza]

Eventhough she didn't have any recent project, Han Hyo Joo still ranked 2nd in a Japanese poll as the most favourite Korean actress....

Seems like she really has a large fanbase in Japan...

https://dot.asahi.com/amp/wa/2020071700021.html?__twitter_impression=true

 

PS: BTW, I enjoyed her Japanese movie  Miracle Devil Claus eventhough she didn't have much screentime..

I heard she is starring in another upcoming Japanese movie..Hope it does well.

 

[adeleyam]

Thank you @eLizza for the information! 
So nice to hear that Japanese fans have never forgotten about her and Dong Yi. I heard Dong Yi still get broadcasted occasionally throughout these years. 

Just hope that the Covid situation can be under control soon so at least her Jap movie premiere will be confirmed to be next year and we will get to watch it sooner or later afterwards.. 

 

I wonder if she has already started to shoot for Hometown Flex? 

 

[frozentundra]

Japan loves Hyo Joo; if Korea ever decides they don't want her, they (and a number of other countries, actually) would happily adopt her!

 

The Japanese film The Sun Does Not Move was supposed to come out in May but has been put off tentatively until spring 2021. Hopefully the virus gets under control and that can happen. 

 

And if they haven't started filming Hometown Flex yet, I assume it would be soon? It's supposed to be this week, right?

[bimini]

Thanks for the news @eLizza! Love seeing that she's still got a strong presence in Japan. Hoping her movie comes out as scheduled next year. I'm still like wthecc when tf did she film this lol 

 

Excited to see her in variety again and to be reunited with so many people. While I'm happy that she's got a movie gig this year, I'm wondering if she'll ever do another drama anytime soon. Seeing so many breakout Kdramas the past year (thanks to Netflix) makes me envious that they are so easily accessible now compared to back then. No more waiting for fansubs lol.

[frozentundra]

7 minutes ago, ohnoitscindy said:

While I'm happy that she's got a movie gig this year, I'm wondering if she'll ever do another drama anytime soon.

 

I wonder if the Kakao acquisition of BH and others will open some doors? Doesn't Kakao want to make their own content or something? I keep hoping, anyway... Movies are nice, but you wait for a year and then it's over in two hours. A drama now and again would be nice, you know?

[frozentundra]

(Sorry, I don't know why this double posted and now I can't delete this second one... Um...I guess I'll edit it to say something useful. Go Hyo Joo! Fighting! )