On March 26th, the production team of tvN’s Saturday-Sunday drama “Queen of Tears” (penned by Park Ji-Eun, helmed by Jang Young-woo and Kim Hee-won) responded to recent reports alleging Kim Seo-Hyun’s appearance fee per episode to be 800 million won, stating unequivocally, “The claim that Kim Soo-hyun’s appearance fee per episode is 800 million won is not true.“

Earlier that day, Newsen had cited multiple drama production company representatives claiming that Kim Soo-Hyun would be compensated with 800 million won per episode for his role in “Queen of Tears”. With the series slated for 16 episodes, this would sum up to 12.8 billion won, constituting a significant portion of the reported 40 billion won production budget.

Of particular note, it had been previously disclosed that Kim Soo-hyun was paid 500 million won per episode for his participation in Coupang Play’s “One Ordinary Day” in 2021. Given the disparity in reported fees, the purported 800 million won per episode for “Queen of Tears” garnered considerable attention and speculation.

Contrary to these claims, the production team of “Queen of Tears” has refuted the alleged fee, emphasizing its inaccuracy. This unexpected rumour not only places undue strain on the production but also unfairly affects the reputation of both the drama and Kim Soo-Hyun.

Kim Soo Hyun’s still from “Queen of Tears” (Credits: Studio Dragon)The drama premiered with a rating of 5.9% for its inaugural episode and steadily climbed to a peak rating of 15% by its sixth episode, garnering significant acclaim and dominating its time slot across all channels, including terrestrial networks.