Actor Kim Soo-hyun is South Korean’s most popular actor, according to Gallup Korea, a local research company, on Thursday.

(OSEN)

In the poll of 1,700 Koreans carried out last October, Kim topped the chart with 4.3 percent. The 74-year-old actor Choi Bool-am, who has starred in over 50 soaps since his debut in 1967, closely followed Kim with 4.2 percent. The other celebrities in the top five were Jo In-sung (3.3 percent), Kim Tae-hee (3.1 percent) and Go Doo-shim (2.6 percent).

Kim Soo-hyun, 27, who starred in the hit drama “My Love from the Star,” is favored by fans in their teens and 20s while Choi is mostly loved by members of the older generation.

By gender, men love actress Kim Tae-hee the most and Kim is still the most favored by female fans.

The film actors’ category was topped by Choi Min-sik, who starred in the megahit movie “Oldboy.” Since the 2003 film, Choi has starred in hits such as “The Admiral: Roaring Currents,” the biggest-grossing Korean film to date, and Luc Besson’s “Lucy.”

Jun Ji-hyun was the only actress to make it into the top 10, which was dominated by actors in their 30s and 40s.

As for Koreans’ favorite singer, Cho Yong-pil topped the list, followed by Lee Sun-hee.

Cho has been active for almost five decades.

In 1994, he became the first Korean recording artist to sell more than 10 million albums, and more than 6 million of his records have been sold in Japan.

Lee is another long-standing favorite among Koreans, having made her debut in 1984.

Among younger artists IU topped the list, coming in fourth overall, while EXO ranked sixth and Girls’ Generation ranked 10th.

In the category for comedians, the top place was taken by Yoo Jae-suk, who is dubbed the “emcee of the nation.”


(khnews@heraldcorp.com)