Korean actors really know how to make a name for themselves – hit dramas,
endless product endorsements, guestings here and there. Some even have their
faces in department stores. Seeing them swimming in their hard earned money,
does it ever cross your mind who among the actors we watch today used to struggle financially?
Rags to riches, they say. Any guesses on which
Korean actors had a poor childhood or faced financial difficulties growing up?
Let’s take a look back at the lives of these popular actors before they got rich and famous.
1. Park Bo-gum First on our list is one
of the most in demand actors today. Currently the face of many brands, who would've
thought that Park Bo-gum filed for bankruptcy in his early 20s? Being assigned as a guarantor for
the money his father loaned, he inherited the debt at the peak of his youth.
Are you shocked that Park Bo-gum acquired a huge debt? Because of their inability to
pay off the debt, the money loaned by his father increased by a lot because of the interest rate.
So behind that charming smile our Bogummy gives us, there’s a hardship in his past that some of
us didn’t know about. But we are so happy that Park Bo-gum found success in his life.
One of our favorite oppas is currently in the military today,
but not wanting to leave fans totally brokenhearted, Park Bo-gum has left us
with the 2020 Korean drama Record of Youth and upcoming movies Seo Bok and Wonderland.
Are you celebrating Park Bo-gum’s success with us? Let us know by clicking that like button!
A household name today in the world of K-drama,
Park Shin Hye is listed as one of the highest paid actresses. But before her fame, things weren’t so
well for the actress. In an episode of a Korean variety show, Park Shin Hye shared that her family
faced financial difficulties. At a young age, her parents struggled to provide for their family.
Leaving everything behind, the actress and her family moved to Seoul for Park Shin Hye’s career.
Entering the entertainment industry as a child star, all her hard work has certainly paid off
as she continues to be a popular actress today. No one can deny the success of her works like
Miracle in Cell No.7, The Heirs, Pinocchio, and Memories of the Alhambra. If you want to see more
of Park Shin Hye, check out her recent movie The Call and her upcoming drama Sisyphus: The Myth.
Dominating both concert stages and
the K-drama world, IU also used to face financial difficulties in her life. The singer-actress live
a relatively comfortable childhood, but that was until debt came into their lives. Her
family fell into debt to the point that IU and her brother ended up living with their grandmother.
It even came to a point that their home once got infested with cockroaches. As if things
weren’t unlucky enough, the popular singer and actress had a rough start in her singing career.
But things happen for a reason, and here we are, watching IU become more successful.
Previously living in unfortunate conditions, IU is currently one of the most successful Korean
idols today. Topping song charts here and there, this woman who once lived in debt is also rocking
the land of Korean dramas today. Dream High, The Producers and Hotel del Luna, these are just some
of the works where the singer-actress gained more recognition and proved that she also has
talent in acting. We love hearing her voice and we are also excited to see her acting skills on
the big screen. Join us as we wait for her upcoming movie Dream with Park Seo Joon.
Despite his great success today,
the Full House actor has had a sad past. We’ve heard other actors struggle financially
in the past, but one of the most painful stories belongs to Rain. Unfortunately,
the singer-actor experienced hunger. Hardships in their lives brought them to having no food
at home. This challenge in their lives was brought by the 1997 Korean financial crisis
that led Rain’s father to declare bankruptcy. It was also with great sadness that his family
couldn’t afford to buy medicine for his sick mother, worsening her health and tragically leading
to her death. We are sending our deepest condolences to the actor and his family.
All smiles now, as our hearts are happy to see the great improvement in the life of Rain. Aside
from being a popular singer, Rain also entered the world of acting and starred in the hit drama Full
House where he gained even more popularity. One of our classic and original oppas is now happily
married to the popular actress Kim Tae Hee.
A round of applause for the Reply 1988 star for her donations to different campaigns.
Knowing what it’s like to struggle financially, our idol is constantly
helping donation drives. Growing up with a mother who worked as a factory worker,
Hyeri shared her feelings during a celebrity talk show back in 2017. Getting emotional,
the star shared a sad memory of her mother working hard and spending her youth for the actress.
Having grown up in the girl group Girl’s Day, popularity
continued to follow the singer-actress as she starred in Reply 1988, one of the highest-rated
dramas in Korean cable television history. Back in 2016, she was even named one of
the highest paid commercial models in South Korea. Are you excited for her new project?
Hopefully coming on our screens this year, Hyeri is giving us My Roommate is a Gumiho.
Collecting boxes
in the streets and recycling them to earn some money, Seo In Guk lived a poor life
just like what we see in some of his dramas and movies. In order to have food on their table,
the actor’s mom worked in the streets to provide for their needs. Even after entering the world
of entertainment, his mom didn’t stop working in the streets. But just like
in the dramas where a poor family becomes rich, Seo In Guk fortunately made a name for himself.
An award-winning actor, Seo In Guk had his breakthrough in one of the installments of
the famous Reply series, Reply 1997. Since then, he’s been giving us time-worthy dramas
like Shopping King Louie and The Smile Has Left Your Eyes. Now serving us one of the most
anticipated dramas in 2021, we’ll be seeing the actor with Park Bo Young in the upcoming drama,
The One Day Destruction Entered the Front Door of My House, or Destruction, for short, lol.
Before having success in the spotlight,
many actors really struggled to make ends meet, and one of them is Han So Hee. The World of the
Married star was so different from her role in the drama, a daughter of a rich family,
because in reality, she worked in a bar for over a year to pursue acting. With her fresh
and glowing aura, who would’ve thought that the actress faced financial difficulties?
Now stealing hearts with her beauty and stunning Instagram photos,
Han So Hee has become a promising actress. Her great execution in her roles became vital to
the stories of the dramas and put her in the spotlight. Who could forget the young mistress
who made our blood boil in the record-breaking drama The World of the Married? Wondering what’s
next for the actress? Han So Hee is reported to star in the upcoming Netflix drama, Undercover.
8. Sandara Park
Another star with a family that declared bankruptcy, Sandara Park joins our list.
Reaching a point where even a bus ride was a luxury, the Korean singer-actress went
to the Philippines to start over again. Joining a talent search in the country,
Sandara Park gained recognition and landed projects and endorsements in the Philippines.
Through years of hard work, Sandara Park returned to Korea and became part of one
of the most successful girl groups of all time, 2NE1. Aside from her singing career,
we’ve also seen her on the small screen with her acting roles in Philippine and
Korean dramas like Cheese in the Trap and The Return of Iljimae. The star
also treated us with some web dramas entitled Dr. Ian and We Broke Up. Spoiling her fans,
she even gave us cameos in dramas including My Love from the Star, The Producers,
and in the recent drama, Dinner Mate. Lately, she’s been serving us lovely song covers.
Living in a house or an
apartment? For Cha Seung Won, he spent years living in a basement with his now ex-wife.
Marrying at an early age, the actor struggled to make ends meet. Truly living in poverty,
he didn’t do much during his childhood because he couldn't afford to try anything.
Thankful that the stars aligned in his favor, the once struggling man now lives comfortably.
He climbed his way to stardom with his works like Kick the Moon, Jail Breakers,
and Hwayugi. The
actor is confirmed to star in the new drama, That Night,
with one of the most in demand actors today, Kim Soo Hyun.
Budgeting is a must, especially when you don’t have a lot of money.
At a young age, Song Jae Rim kept track of his expenses because his family lived in poverty.
He even shared his experience of growing up poor in an episode of MBC’s Human Documentary.
Working hard to earn money and make a name for himself, Song Jae Rim began his career as a runway
model and entered the world of acting. Wondering where you’ve seen the actor? He gained popularity
in the reality show We Got Married and played roles in the historical drama Moon Embracing
the Sun and action drama Two Weeks. You’ll see more of the actor in the drama, Not Yet 30.
Hardships in life aren’t permanent and these actors proved to us
that with great determination and hard work, success will be welcoming you.
Who among them did you not know used to live in poverty? Let’s talk about it in
the comment section. Oh, and if we missed an actor, feel free to let us know. Thank you!