Lee Min Ho open to do Filipino drama

MANILA, Philippines - Korean superstar Lee Min Ho, who first endeared himself to the Filipino public as the charismatic Goo Jun Pyo of Boys Over Flowers, has expressed his willingness to do a Filipino drama for as long as the character and the plot appeal to him.

“I’m open to do a Filipino drama if I like the role or if the plot is attractive to me. I don’t have any specific criteria on doing a drama based on where and what country. If I like the storyline, I’ll go for it,” Min Ho told The STAR through a translator during a recent interview with the Philippine media, organized by the clothing line Bench.

The Korean heartthrob visited Manila for a series of mall tours and meet-and-greet sessions for Bench, of which he is an endorser.

On Sunday, chaos briefly descended at the Mall of Asia after hundreds of teenagers swamped the venue to see Min Ho once again, whose last visit to Philippines was in August 2012.

“I took this opportunity to see him because it might take two years before he comes back again, especially because he might enlist in the military next year,” Min Ho fan Jennifer Junio said.

The same frenzied atmosphere was replicated at the Glorietta Mall and Trinoma as hordes of teenagers came to see Min Ho in the flesh. 

Min Ho’s brief speech was hardly audible because of the screams, but these did not seem to annoy Min Ho, who was warm and solicitous to his Pinoy fans. He peppered his sentences with few Tagalog words like “Mabuhay,” “Magandang hapon,” “Mahal ko kayo” and “Ano ang pangalan mo,” to the delight of the crowd.

Min Ho made many Filipino hearts a-flutter as the leader of F4 in Boys Over Flowers. The love affair continued when ABS-CBN aired Personal Taste in 2010 where he played a guy pretending to be gay so he can live with the girl he loves in one house. In 2011, his hit series City Hunter was aired over ABS-CBN, a departure from the rom-com series he used to star in.

Pretty soon, Min Ho’s 2013 drama series Heirs opposite Park Shin Ye, will air on ABS-CBN. The series follows a group of rich high school students who are groomed to take over their families’ business empires in Korea. Min Ho plays Kim Tan, the handsome heir to a large Korean conglomerate who is sent to study abroad. There, he meets and falls in love with Eun Sang (Shin Hye), an ordinary Korean student.

During the interview, Min Ho admitted that Heirs was emotionally-wrenching and tested his acting mettle.

At first, he thought acting out his part as a spoiled brat would be a walk in the park. Min Ho said he never thought that Heirs would be an acting piece.

“Because it’s a teen drama, I didn’t expect it to be so emotionally draining. Heirs became an emotional experience for me. I had a hard time bringing out my emotions in the series. I used all my physical and emotional energy to bring out all that acting,” the Korean dreamboat said.

“Heirs is really a good drama. Everyone put out their heart and soul into this series, from the actors to the whole staff, that’s why I think we won awards for this drama,” he added.

For his portrayal as Kim Tan, Min Ho won a Best Actor Award from SBS Drama Awards, as well as the Popularity Award, Teen Award and Best Couple Award with Shin Hye.

The series ended in Korea last November.

Min Ho never really took a break because right after his series, he has been busy with doing commercials in Korea, Japan and China where he is also immensely popular. His Weibo account (Chinese version of Twitter) has reached 20 million. 

Next month, Min Ho will be busy once again to shoot a new movie Gangnam Blues. “The background is in Gangnam (the affluent district in Seoul) in the ’70s, when it was not yet developed. The story revolves around the dreams and aspirations of five boys while Gangnam was modernizing,” Min Ho explained.

He’s aware that he gets the same characters over and over, but he doesn’t mind. “Korean dramas, if you look at them have plots like that. In Heirs, I accepted the role even if it was about teenagers, never mind that I’m 27 because I believe that I could still portray that role and I want to portray it,” he said.

In the future, he said he would like to portray characters that reflect his childhood, as a boy who loves and plays soccer before showbiz beckoned.

“I want to try new areas. My dream role is to portray a small-town boy pursuing his dreams and trying to make it big in the city.”

Regarding his visit to Manila, he said he’s happy to be back. “I like that my fans here always make me feel at home and special, they’re very passionate and I really appreciate that. I will try very hard to reciprocate their love and support. I hope to come back here once again,” he said.

For him, the best thing about being a Bench endorser is that it allows him to communicate with his Filipino fans.

“I can share my pictures and information to my fans here, that’s being the great part of Bench,” he said.