Is it necessary for an actress to cry in order for the drama to take off?

A solid story line and likeable characters are imperative to a drama's success. However, that isn't all. There needs to be a special something that will captivate the viewers. That's why sometimes an unnecessary bed scene or kiss scene is sometimes added to the drama. But there's something that's just as effective in raising viewership. And that is an actress' tears.

An actor's acting skills is a determining factor in a drama's success. But it's not always easy making the actors stand out. While the actors could do a great job portraying the character, it simply isn't enough. Ordinary acting skills don't elicit praise such as "Wow, he/she acts well." That requires tears.

A management rep revealed, "One way to look at it is that acting scenes or characters without any emotional ups and downs is the most difficult. But the truth is, this kind of acting often goes without recognition as 'great acting.' Instead of the ordinary scenes, there needs to be a really angry scene or sobbing scene or another severe emotional outburst in order to stand out to the audience as a great actor."

The rep continued, "This is the reason why so many actors who want to get recognized as 'an actor who acts well' challenge themselves to play characters who have severe emotional ups and downs."

Currently KBS drama "Secret" is taking the lead in viewership percentage for Wednesday/Thursday dramas. As expected, this drama is garnering the interest of viewers because of an actress' tears. The lead female role is played by Hwang Jung Eum, who has been nicknamed "Queen of Tears" because of this drama.

She plays the character Kang Yoo Jung, whose life has a lot of twists and turns. Thanks to all the misery in her life, there is not a day that goes by without shedding tears. She resorts to crying when she is betrayed by the man she loves, when she says goodbye to her child, when she's worried about her ill father, and even while kissing the male lead Ji Sung.

Thanks to Hwang Jung Eum's tears, "Secret" is currently number 1 in audience viewership, and recorded a 17.3% viewership (Niels Korea) for the November 7th broadcast. It's no wonder they say a drama's success is related to an actress' tears.

Photo credit: KBS