South Korean dramas with foreigners in its cast are likely to suffer from low ratings but "Big Hero 6" star Daniel Henney, 37, helped change the way Koreans view foreign entertainers. This is according to Yoon, an entertainment agency CEO who declined to reveal his full name.
"Foreign actors have rarely entered stardom here until Korean-American actor Daniel Henney appeared in the Korean entertainment scene," Yoon told Korea Times. "I think Henney helped change Koreas' view on foreign actors in a more positive way."
Born in Carson City, Michigan, Henney is of mixed descent. His mother is Korean American while his father is Irish American.
Henney made his debut in South Korea with an advertisement for a cosmetic product. He did commercials for Olympus cameras with Jun Ji Hyun and for Klasse air conditioners of Daewoo Electronics with Kim Tae Hee.
In 2005, Henney was tapped to play a supporting role in "My Love Sam Soon" although he does not speak Korean. He played a surgeon named Dr. Henry Kim, who is devotedly in love with Hee-jin (Jung Ryeo Won).
After the success of "My Love Sam Soon," Henney starred in "Spring Waltz" in 2006 and in "The Fugitive: Plan B" with Rain and Lee Na Young in 2010. In Hollywood, Henney appeared in "Hawaii Five-0," "NCIS: Los Angeles," "Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders" and "Criminal Minds," which recently enjoyed increase in ratings, TV by the Numbers has learned.
While Henney managed to help Koreans welcome foreigners in the entertainment industry, the country has yet to see successful African-Americans in dramas and in the fashion industry. Samuel Okyere, a Ghanaian TV personality, appeared in several Korean variety shows such as "Running Man" and "Infinite Challenge" but he has yet to play a leading or a supporting role in a drama series.
In the fashion industry, only few non-Korean models are seen walking down the catwalk at Seoul Fashion Week shows and they are white. Korean model Marina Lee, 27, said she saw an African-American model only once on the Korean fashion runway in her seven-year career.
Watch a video featuring Henney here: