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Lee Min-ho in new drama from star writer Kim Eun-sook

Lee Min-ho! Back in a drama! From “rom-com queen” writer Kim Eun-sook! So many feelings to feel! Don’t forget to breathe!

This is quite the power hookup, as far as big names go — Kim Eun-sook dramas are huge hits almost automatically, with A Gentleman’s Dignity and Secret Garden being her two most recent offerings. Perhaps the bigger accomplishment is that her dramas aren’t “merely” popular; they often have that extra little kick that make them pop-culture buzz projects, whether it’s due to a particular line of dialogue or a recurring joke or a blue sequined tracksuit. (Hand-stitched in Italy!)

This drama is titled (a little awkwardly) He Who Wishes To Wear the Crown, Endure Its Weight: Heirs. (I hope it’ll just go by Heirs in the way that the long version of Nice Guy’s title was only used on posters and promos.) There’s very little information available about the concept or story; we merely have writer Kim’s assurances that she is creating the hero just for Lee Min-ho, to suit him perfectly. Considering how her male leads have historically been very memorable, I have no doubt we’re in for an interesting role here.

I’ll admit that I’m not personally super excited about Kim Eun-sook’s work (I have major love-hate relationship with her shows), but I do think that having her name attached to a drama means it’s very likely going to be a fizzy, banter-filled, slick and glossy romantic comedy that audiences just love to eat up, which appeal to a wide age range of viewers, whether teenaged or ajumma-aged or older (hey, grandmas love romance too, right?). And I can definitely get onboard Lee Min-ho being in another romantic comedy.

As for Lee Min-ho… well, he’s Lee Min-ho. You know, I’ll call a spade a spade: Faith finally opened my eyes to the cracks in his acting facade, whereas previously I’d sincerely believed he had once-in-a-generation phenom potential. Now I’ll concede he is a pretty good actor for his age and experience level, but not without some obvious limitations, who has some work to do to upgrade to the next level of his craft. That said, Lee Min-ho does possess a rare spark that lives regardless of technical skill, and he may still be a once-in-a-generation actor in a pop-culture sense — damn, he is popular. It’s his special It Factor that makes him so exciting to watch… and no, the beauty doesn’t hurt.

Directing is Kang Shin-hyo, who worked on Tazza and Midas. Heirs will be 20 episodes long and plans to air on SBS later this year.

Via E Daily

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Sooo excited!!!! I <3 lee min ho!

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IKR!!! Smexy HAWT creatures...

waaahhh!!! LEE MIN HO ssi!

Excited for his Rom-Com! :)

hope he will have a girl with a BAD-ASS character
and I hope not with too HUGE age gaps...

could they have an actress his age? or even a year younger? :D

or I could watch him with YEH as well :)

SQUEAL :OOOOOO

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I agree with you dear otchosais!!
I have read something on a website! It is about the leader actress :S :'((
I have not heard about her,she does not seem talented!!
:'(((((
her name is "Krystal"!
also another actress called "Jiyoung"!!
do you know them??
they are not popular!!!!

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Krystal idol from f(x)
Jiyoung idol form Kara

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how can you not know them....

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Squeeeee

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very very exited! this made my day and it has barely started!
what a GREAT FRIDAY.
He is getting better and better and I have no doubt it will be good. spazzy. very electrified.

and I want pink pants again.

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Yes gawd!

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Thanks!

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Eeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Whatever it is, I'm gonna watch it!!!! ;) (haven't read the post yet, just the title!)

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I stopped watching the writer's last drama at ep.2 because I felt it wasn't as cracktastic as SG.

Re: LMH's acting in Faith - I really blame the director for that...for every little problem in Faith, it was the director's fault. ;) Oh yeah, the write too because I heard she changed a lot of things in the drama. Just glad that the romance & chemistry with KHS was great. Hope this time, we get a good director too.

*squeals again* It's LMH! In a rom-com!!!! Yaaaay!

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I also have a love/hate relationship with Kim Eun Sook's works: I adored City Hall, I still watch it when I am feeling out of sorts with the current state of kdramas, but SeGa had some issues and I hated AGD with the power of a thousand burning suns.
I like it best when she does strong female characters - or ones that show a lot of growth - and male characters that have a GOOD REASON for their jerkitude (because they are always jerks).
I'm not sure what she will do with Lee Min Ho - he actually seems a bit nice and fluffy compared to most of her heroes.

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you captured my feelings regarding those dramas perfectly!

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OMG me too!
I *still* cannot for the life of me understand the love or even like of AGD.

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"Some issues"?

SG exemplified the WORST of K-dramas - cliché-filled story line and dialogue, stereotypical one dimensional characters, supporting characters who really had nothing to do and were just "filler," storylines that went nowhere and were inexplicably dropped w/ no resolution, subpar to bad acting, etc.

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If you are in the minority, you will at least have me in your team about SG. I also "cannot for the life of me understand the love or even like of SG"! :-)

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For me it's the opposite: I LOVE this writer and her work but I strongly dislike Lee Min Ho's acting. He is very limited especially in dramatic scenes. He's no Hyun Bin that's for sure.....sigh

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I think you are right. he did exactly what he was told to do. thing is, if you tell him anything, he will do it. if you tell him to out-do himself, he will. he is like the "absolut Boyfriend" guy. just give however outrageous command, he can still do it. but if you give mediocre guiding...

but no, I cannot call him mediocre. anything but that.

what I think gives him his "spark" is this.....honesty? sincerity? and there is no ... you know, there is no fluffy pride, he is not the type of actor who is always self-aware, like "I am the best!". He is modest.

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"I can definitely get onboard Lee Min-ho", too...oh wait, it that what you meant?

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good one. discovering her faustian slip.

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Freudian ;-)

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Freudian slip **

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I, too, am in the "Freudian" camp. But I guess, in afth120's defense, to get "onboard Lee Min Ho" you pretty much have to make a deal with the devil? =P

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Correction: Paul's defense*

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lol :-)
Lee Minho ,I LOVE YOU

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I am totally looking forward to it. Feast! feast feast on Lee Min Ho!!!!yum!!!!!!

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Yeiiiiiiiiiiiii, Lee Min Hot is back, so excited :D

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YES! haha, Faith was a tad disappointing, but more of MinHo galore!!!!!!

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Lee Min Ho is back in the house baby!! I missed him, didn't really like faith even though I forced myself to watch it halfway.

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Ahhhhh.... Excited for this.

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"Faith finally opened my eyes to the cracks in his acting facade..."

yep, same here. but he's been great in at least two hit dramas (bof, city hunter) and he's still fairly young.

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Just curious...

What cracks does everyone see regarding his acting and what do you feel he does well...outside of that "IT factor" that I absolutely agree he's got.

I really am curious what you all see. :) I'd like to sharpen up my "analyze the acting" skills.

Thanks!

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In my case what I noticed the most is that he needs good directing. If he does not get it you can tell by the strength in the performance, it weakens, it is by no means bad, it just looses its punch and it gets harder for the audience (i.e me) to connect with his character.

And the It Factor thing, is that you can't look away, even if the acting lost its punch you just can't look away. Its not the pretty/ hotness, yes the guys hardly come hotter and handsomer than that, but handsome man in k-ent there are plenty. He has some magnetism, or something that just pulls you in.

And I know that a sound like a crazy fan, but while I may be his fan, I'm not the type that squeals and thinks 'oppa is perfect', cause God know couldn't finish Faith.

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I agree about the need for good directing... But in Faith's case the directing was so outstandingly bad I almost hate to put any responsibility on LMH. His strength is in his subtlety (little twitches of reaction, etc.) and that director didn't let any subtlety through. (There were seriously times when it was like the director thought, "This calls for an emotional response! Quick! Film the back of his head!")

The actors who did alright picked up on the director's lack and went big and it seemed like, to me, LMH couldn't adjust, didn't have the experience or confidence to find his character on his own and bring it forward with a vengeance. So he kind of... faded.

It might have been different if he'd been doing a comedy and could go silly (like in BOF -- not a comedy but the characters were pretty broad), but he had a serious role so...

But I just can't imagine what that set was like to work on. The experienced actors had to see how badly they were getting screwed, and LMH was the lead and so he must have felt responsibility and yet at the same time, he was one of the least experienced (first historical, right?) and with the lack of direction you know he got... it must have been so, so frustrating.

(Heh. This post got really long. Obviously, I've had thoughts. ;))

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Thanks Betsy Hp! I've wondered for a long time what people were referring to. I heard "flaws" and "bad directing" a bunch of times, but your post makes sense of those comments.

One of the upsides and downsides of needing to rely on subtitles is that interpreting the acting is a bit like the experience of reading a book. Unless the acting is particularly assertive, it's possible to 'read' pretty much anything into the performance that you want. (Closest analogy that I can think of: a book is always better than the movie that's based on it.) So when people say 'the performance was flat' lacks helpful context. It leaves me thinking: do they mean Keanu Reeves flat, Brad Pitt flat, or *insert name of any top dramatic actor* in a troubled project flat?

It helps to have someone take the time to post a diplomatic and thoughtful analysis.

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His acting sometimes just feels a bit flat?

I don't know, I'd have to go rewatch his stuff to be more specific. :-P

I think he was perfect for City Hunter, but I dropped Faith after like 5 episodes, Personal Taste was okay but nothing amazing. Didn't get far with Boys over Flowers (the Japanese version & Matsujun beat the K one hands down IMO).

Unfortunately, LMH doesn't even do anything for me in the looks department (he's fine looking, but not exactly my type).

I might try this though - pending for details on the script. I've only watched Kim Eun-sook's Secret Garden, which did have me hooked but also had me shaking my head at times (Binnie and Ha Ji-won made all the difference though).

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I think we all like him best when he gets out of his shell of a glossy Flower boy and shows us some amazingly raw and real emotions , and this is most certainly his X factor. He lets us see "beneath his beautiful". And yes,Javabeans, the beauty doesn't hurt at all. The guy' is phenomenaly photogenic.

Have you ever noticed, ladies , that LMH is always at his best towards 5-8th episodes of the dramas , when the main conflict unfolds, then gradually he loses the mojo. This was especially true in Faith ( my dear god, this could be his best drama, if written, directed and filmed in a proper way).
LMH's speciality is dramatic acting, he is not good when too nice and fluffy. I miss Pu Chai, and the wild general Choi Young.
I totally hate watching LMH's interviews: his political correctness, good manners and politeness give me nausea.
As for the cracks in his acting: he needs a good director or a very good partner. Basically, he needs to be leaded by the director or the partner, then he shines. His reactions are amazingly good. If forced to lead ( as it happened in Faith), his acting becomes shallow and untalented immediately.

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Hello Waiting,

I really love your question and I would love to answer it, which I will hopefully today (tonight, DB time) or over the weekend (I have to go and deal with real life :-( ). Thank you for asking for our opinions and for being interested in what we see (in this case regarding LMH) and why we see it that way. I have done the same thing, asking questions about directing, and acting in the past, on Open Thread.

So, if you remember to check back here over the weekend, my answer will hopefully be posted. Please let us know what you think as well. Have a wonderful weekend.

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Just Lee Min Ho already got me hook :D

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who are his friends????? omg.. hope someone like jung so min to be casted as his female lead :p

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That would be amazing. Jung So Min needs a hit drama so she can get some more exposure. She's so underrated.

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Uhm, I love her, but she's too short for LMH :)

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I think height differences like that is adorable. :)

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Hello "other" Grace! :)

Where are you from?

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I totally forgot about her! She's got really good range, too bad all the limelight goes to idols.
LMH and her would look really good together :D

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I really hope it's good!! Lee Min Hot <3

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The drama is a reverse version of gentleman's dignity about four young men student and another four young women. It's a Boys Over Flowers+Gossip Girl kind of drama. f(x)'s Krystal, KARA's Jiyoung and another rookie actor, I forgot the name is considering the drama.

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Ack dramagods, no please! Not idols in a LMH drama! But I'd go for four hotties. My wish list:

Song Joong-ki
Sung Joon
Kim Soo-hyun
Choi Siwon
Jung Il-woo
Yoo Ah-in
Lee Hong-ki
Kim Kibum

;) ;) ;)

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Problem with this list is most are better actors then Lee Min-ho and I hate to see any of them play second fiddle to a an actor just because he is more popular especially Song Joong-ki and Kim Soo-hyun. Lee Min-hoo has a long way to go before he gets to their acting level.

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If I were him I would take challenge to act with Song Joong-ki, it is always good to grow. As for Kim Soo Hyun- I don't see any challenge here. KSH is overrated much, to my opnion.

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I dont see LMH taking anything less than the lead role in the future. I think his popularity is way too big for him to step back or share the spotlight with another actor even if the other actor is the talented Song Joong-ki.

KSH is not as overrated as LMH in my opinion. I'm still ticked that he won the daesang award over 2 amazing veteran actors (Shin Ha-kyun and Han Suk Kyu) but I cant deny that he has grown A LOT as an actor. After watching him took a small role in Giant and I was impressed and said to myself, this kid is gonna make it big someday and he did it. Same thing with Song Joong-ki after watching him in Sungkyunkwan Scandal.

I think LMH wasn't ready for a sageuk. I think he did Faith because of the star writer Song Ji-Na and PD Kim Jong-Hak. They have a reputation for making some of the most successful dramas in Korea like Sandglass, Eye of Dawn etc. These 2 should have been on the writer and PD WTF happen list of 2012.

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hah i have to giggle a little at the no idols! unless they're male hotties like siwon and hongki

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Lol, no idol...yet your wishlist consists of Choi Siwon, Lee Hongki, and Kim Kibum?

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There are so many good young actresses and actors out there... why must I endure crappy Idol acting. Lets face it, while some are indeed good, and others decent, the majority just suck........ suck so bad I can't watch...

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Oh please no. BOF + Gossip Girl + AGD??? I can't tell you how many ways this sounds horrible, especially when you add a bunch of non-acting idols to the mix.

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I agree here. What can be more horrible than this combo? Or no, did LMH decide to go all commercial and make some big bucks before he goes to the army?
I thought he was into good acting. Given that he likes Leo Di Caprio.
If these rumors are true, then it seems like he wants to cater to the asian market now. Probably this drama is the same case as the Love Rain- the investors dictated the writing.

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He's already very popular in Asia though. As popular as the idols and more.

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Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Hopefully they are in consideration for some supporting roles.
I trust KES to pair LMH with a leading lady of his level, she who paired Hyun Bin with HJW and JDG with KHN.
I liked SeGa but I could not finish AGD.

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SO EXCITED!!!! :-)
Lee Minho! Welcome back

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ahh this has made my day! After Faith - which was really really disappointing I am ready for my Lee Min Ho fix!

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The Easter Bunny came early for me! Yay! My boyfriend is in a new drama and a rom/com at that.

I share some of the love/hate that JB does with this writer, but I still tend to enjoy her dramas overall. But really it's Lee Min Ho. She could write him knitting for 20 hours and I'd watch.

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Heeeeeee!

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Yeah, well, lately, it has been a love HATE relationship, as in I do love parts of what she has done, be what I HATE i really really really hate.

LMH can do no wrong in my eyes. I love love love him.

What a stupid title.
You know we are going to end up with Hairs somehow. It's bound to happen.

And the age appropriate leading lady will be?
Guesses? PSH!!!

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I saw that she was considering Swords and Flowers for KBS, so maybe no dice on that front?

I think/hope/pray that Kim Eun Sook will push for a rookie actress as the lead. We desperately need new leading ladies up in here.

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'Hairs'? lol :-)
That completely change the meaning of whole sentence. rofl :-)

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aaand the morning porridge is now inside my nose. thank you, "hairs".

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Park Shin Hye ( assuming that PSY is her) is all over the place these days. She's great but can we please have somebody else? i have a feeling that it'll be Han Ji Min. Since she's from Jang Dong Gun and Kim Ha Neul agency as well as Hyun Bin when he was in SeGa

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if it's Han Ji Min, then I'm totally in! tho as long as the female lead is not an idol i'm ok...

i kind of wish park bo young would be casted..!!

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Park Bo Young would be awesome. I've never seen Han Ji Min in anything, but I've always liked her in interviews/etc. and I haven't really heard her acting being criticized, so that's good. I hope to God that idols aren't cast; and I say that as a Krystal fan (as she's "supposedly" one of the females being considered) because I want to see her work to distinguish herself more in supporting roles instead of making an undeserved and premature jump to leading lady, which is a surefire way to garner antis.

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yeah... agree.... i like Han Ji Min to be his co star...

oh man my mind now goes imagination it.......

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I have noticed that Park Shin Hye is becoming selective in the roles she undertakes......DWIAG , FBND and miracle of room 7. She looked great with LMH in all the ads but a lot will depend on the character to be played. Furthermore, it seems that she is already interested in Sword and flower

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mannnn i'm excited!!! please please please let it be a spunky leading lady for this drama.pleaseeee

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Kim Eun Sook is
well known for creating strong,
male lead characters that haven't
been surpassed by anyone, so i am looking forward to what
she will bring into Lee Min Ho's
new transformation.

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LOL with a title like the
"Heirs" it looks like we'll have
another jerk of a rich boy to follow
on from Hyun Bin in Secret Garden
and Jang Dong Gun in A
Gentleman's Dignity.

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This drama would be like F44 in their school days.

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So regular F4? Lol

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I hope Yoona gets to be the leading lady. Or maybe Kim So Eun. KSE is actually a really great actress but she's always underrated. A lot better than PSH.. No offense to all the PSH fan. Or maybe they need to bring back MinMin couple. Par Min Young. She's hot.
So, it's either Yoona, Kim So Eun or Park Min Young.

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You might be on to something here - Yoona and LMH both were in an ad campaign together recently. It looks like there may be heavy SM involvement in this drama so I wouldn't be surprised if Yoona gets cast. I would be sad, but not surprised.

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Eh. The Yoona + Lee Minho ads have been going on for a good couple years, actually. So it's not like SM's suddenly gunning for Yoona to be paired up with him.

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I think I'll pass on Yoona, but like the idea of Kim So Eun. She was really funny and adorable in Horse Doctor and it would be nice to see her in a leading role. Otherwise maybe Moon Chae Won, Han Hyo Joo - or if he is going with someone a little more older again, maybe Song Ji Hyo (love her on Running Man!).

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i doubt it's going to be song ji hyo, she's currently doing a drama with lee dong wook.

i would also pass on yoona, i hate seeing idols as female leads! i also like the idea of kim so eun, she should be getting lead roles instead of some lucky female idols who i will not name~

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YOONA and LMH is just.... a VISUAL COUPLE for me. An ad campaign for them is enough. Besides, Yoona has not yet impressed me with her acting. No offense to her fans, I mean she's really pretty and obviously the camera loves her pretty face. But her acting is just..okay but not enough for me to keep watching her drama.

And here it goes... PARK MIN YOUNG, another pretty pretty. I liked her in Sungkyungkwan Scandal but the rest of her dramas, she's just...meh. I don't know if i'm the only one but i'm not really into her in City Hunter.

I like the idea of KIM SO EUN. She rocked her princess role which is extremely hilarious and sweet in Horse Doctor. Given that KSE is really charming, I think her charm really fits in a rom-com.

I'm also thinking of JUNG SO MIN. She's great actually, I really liked her in Playful Kiss and Can we get married. It's just that a big project is needed for her.

But I can't see the chemistry with LMH with neither of KSE and JSM. But I like them that I'm hoping they will be in this drama. As second leads perhaps?

HAN HYO JOO or SHIN MIN AH will be a great choice for LMH's leading lady.

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I heard that PMY will have new drama with Jang geun Suk Is it true ???

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God, I would love to see Jang Geun Suk in a drama again. I really did love him in YB. but that was 2009 and he's had some bad dramas, bad hairstyles and bad fashion.
hopefully he friggin trims his hair and tone down his craziness so I can revive my love for him. also, a good script and a good leading lady help.

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And as I am Park shin hye fan she won't got in this drama she considering to start new historical Revenge Romance drama so I hope she will accept the role but if she refuse it that bcz her busy schedule Her tours and Graduation project so don't be so angry she won't accept Heirs with Lee Min Hoo :D

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I like Yoona opposite Lee Min Ho , there is rumor there is gonna be at least one idol in this cast, and Yoona and Uee are only female idols i can think of that have leading lady experience!!!!

But i would also like Park Min Young! I think she would make great couple with him!

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He's going to play a rich
guy, a jerk most likely from the
beginning.
I've
never liked any of her shows. And
is he playing a teenage high school character?
Please, don't let this be; as much as
I love him, he's a bit old to play a
teenager, college age I approve.

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*Fist pump and hoorray!*
LOL! Now I will have to like LMH... which is not an obvious thing for me.
But I trust that writer and I would follow her in anything. Saying that I'm excited is an euphemism.
If there is one thing that I love with KES, it's that way she has of molding her characters for the person cast (it's mostly true for the men, a little less for the ladies). I can totally see her doing a grilling session on LMH: "What are you good at? What are your weaknesses, what are your hobbies, your habits, your friends..." And then we will find all that incorporated in his character.
Basically we are almost in April and HEIRS will be aired this summer: Everyone has enough time to prepare quietly (no pressure guys ^^). I'm wondering who will be cast as LMH's partner? I would like to be a fly on the wall. :)

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Pray no idol female cast & not any of those actresses that cannot act.

Re-watch Faith (I know, I know), missed him that much & that's the only show I have no problem with the actress.

Please give us a good female lead this time...pretty please.

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Lee minho + Han hyoju Please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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