South Korea is aging.

Korean dramas that previously focused on young audiences are gradually giving way to works about middle-aged people. This reality reflects changing tastes and the aging society of the Northeast Asian country.

The trend of aging leading roles

On August 12th, the South Korean broadcaster ENA released the drama series. Your Honor , starring veteran actors Son Hyun Joo (59 years old) and Kim Myung Min (51 years old) in the lead roles, is a dramatic film focusing on the father-son relationship of a man whose son is a criminal. killing And the other person is the father of the murdered victim.

Two days prior, JTBC premiered its weekend drama. Romance in the House , featuring female stars. performer Kim Ji Soo (51 years old) and her male co-star Ji Jin Hee (53 years old). These two stars have 32 and 25 years of experience respectively. In the film, they play a divorced couple.

Kim Ji Soo and Ji Jin Hee star in Romance in the House.

TV series Perfect Family KBS's drama, which began airing on August 14th, stars Kim Byung Chul (50 years old) and Yoon Se Ah (46 years old) in the lead roles. The drama revolves around a family caught up in a murder case. The two older actors play a married couple.

According to According to The Korea Times , the average age of the six main actors in the three dramas that premiered in August was 51.6 years old. [Context] Korean TV drama It seems to reflect the aging society of the Northeast Asian nation, with the voices of young people fading and stories increasingly focusing on individuals in their 40s and 50s.

In July, the number of people aged 65 and over in South Korea exceeded 10 million. According to the Korean Statistics Office, the average age of the population rose to 45.7 years, double the average age of 21 in 1980.

Korean dramas, like the country itself, are aging. The changes in drama content align with the demographic shifts in South Korea.

“As people get older, the perception that being 50 is ‘old’ weakens. This trend affects television drama production, with actors who started their careers 20 to 30 years ago still playing leading roles,” observes Yoon Su Jin, a professor of Korean literature at Chungnam National University.

This trend is also evident in web dramas airing in 2024. A common thread is that the lead roles are often given to established actors in their 40s and 50s, such as Yum Jung Ah and Cho Jin Woong in... No Way Out: The Roulette and Kim Hee Ae and Sul Kyung Gu in The Whirlwind .

Yum Jung Ah plays the mayor in the drama series No Way Out: The Roulette.

It's increasingly difficult to find television series that center around young people. The most popular and widely discussed dramas of the first half of the year have primarily focused on conflicts or relationships among older generations rather than the experiences of younger people.

Television series such as Queen of Tears ( Queen of Tears ) - revolves around a divorced couple who rekindle their love and Marry My Husband ( Go ahead and marry my husband ) - focusing on revenge against an unfaithful husband are examples of this trend.

Despite depicting a romantic, puppy love story, Lovely Runner ( Carrying Him While Running ) primarily revolves around themes that resonate with viewers in their 30s and 40s, blending teenage experiences into a broader story aimed at an older audience.

Young people are at a disadvantage.

In recent years, television shows aimed at young audiences have been limited to a few titles such as Twinkling Watermelon (Sparkling Watermelon, 2023) Twenty-Five Twenty-One ( Twenty-five years old, twenty-one years old , 2022) and Our Beloved Summer ( Our beloved summer , 2021)...

Popular culture critic Kim Heon Sik stated, “As teen dramas become increasingly scarce, stories about young people have been incorporated into dramas targeting audiences in their 30s and 40s. Meanwhile, teenagers and those in their 20s are leading the trend on social media and online dramas, where they prefer to watch content outside of traditional television programs.”

The hit Asian drama Queen of Tears, released in the first half of 2024, targets an audience with real-life experiences.

The declining population in their 20s, coupled with long-standing employment challenges, has further reduced the presence of young people in mainstream films.

The shrinking television market is further accelerating these trends. Production and broadcasting companies are focusing on catering to those in their 30s and 40s. They are playing it "safe" by casting established actors who have proven their talent and promotional potential, rather than taking risks with newcomers.

As a result, the traditional path for emerging actors to rise to prominence through roles in television dramas is becoming increasingly difficult. The success rate for K-pop idols venturing into acting is also low.

"Constantly casting actors who have been active for decades makes it difficult for the new generation of actors to break into the industry. To expand both the cast and the audience, we need television dramas that appeal to a wider audience and bridge the generational gap," critic Kim commented.

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/han-quoc-dang-gia-di-3316489.html