Chapter 5: I Want It All
Based on the information he gathered, the drama's ratings were average, but its online discussion was surprisingly high, even surpassing "when the camellia blooms," which aired during the same period!
"when the camellia blooms" was KBS's drama king in 2019, with lead actors Gong Hyo-jin and Kang Ha-neul both being top actors, and a formidable production team, ultimately breaking rating records.
Even so, its online discussion did not surpass this drama.
Such high online discussion indicates that the drama's audience is mostly young people, and young people nowadays rarely sit in front of the TV to watch shows; they mostly watch online.
This is the best type of drama to attract loyal drama fans and individual fans.
This drama's reception overseas was far greater than in South Korea, achieving explosive results.
This alone was enough to attract Kwon Xuanhe.
Other scripts sometimes featured supporting roles with a fair amount of screen time, and the cast and production were relatively stronger, but they didn't offer as much personal enhancement after airing as this drama.
Some, even with big casts like "crash landing on you," only had a few fleeting scenes before exiting, and he didn't feel the need to fight tooth and nail for them.
Even if there were roles with enough screen time to be protagonists, they were for the worst types of one-act plays and web dramas.
All things considered, this was Kwon Xuanhe's decision.
"The charm of the second male lead in this drama is no less than that of the male lead, and it's even very easy to make it shine."
"Moreover, if I go for the audition, the all-new cast will mean less competition for me, and debuting as the second male lead in a major network drama will be beneficial for my future development."
The cast for this drama is very new; the male lead is Kim Ro-woon, a member of the boy group SF9, and the female lead debuted as a child star; the auditioning actors for other roles will only have shallower experience.
"And this is a campus romance drama, a type of melo-drama (can be broadly understood as a romantic drama), so the barrier to entry for me to act in it is much lower, and it also suits me."
Kwon Xuanhe couldn't tell him directly, "I have a cheat, listen to me," so he could only approach it from a different angle.
"I can't afford to waste time now; I need to act in a drama and convert my current popularity while I still have some."
"Weak competitors, low acting threshold, high billing, not a bad foundation, and it's still a major network drama."
"Besides, I'm not only auditioning for this one; I'll go to all the ones I should."
Park Zhengting saw that he wasn't impulsively chasing status when choosing this drama, but rather had his own considerations, and his furrowed brows gradually relaxed.
It was just an audition; it didn't mean he had already secured the role, it was merely a choice at this point.
Thinking of this, Park Zhengting said nothing more.
"Let's think about it more. Currently, you are still a complete newcomer, and there are more important things to focus on right now."
Seeing that he didn't express opposition and respected his opinion, Kwon Xuanhe breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, Park Zhengting was an experienced professional, and his words carried more weight than his own.
What was that 'more important place to focus on'?
"The controversy over the rankings after the 'Produce 101' program aired is growing, and more and more people online are questioning it."
"The TV station and several big companies are trying to suppress it, but it's still hard to say whether the controversy can be quelled."
Because Kwon Xuanhe and several other contestants with high hopes of debuting were not selected for the debut lineup, the online uproar was actually very significant, even intensifying.
Among them, the controversy surrounding Kwon Xuanhe was at the forefront.
He could be said to be one of the people with the highest hopes of debuting, but who knew that in the end he would be reduced to fighting for the last debut spot; his individual fans are currently causing a huge commotion online.
Naver's trending searches, Pann's hot posts, and discussion videos on YouTube all have very high click frequencies, with controversies emerging endlessly.
In reality, Kwon Xuanhe knew through Park Zhengting even before his debut that he had no hope of debuting and had been kicked out due to a trade-off of interests.
This was mainly because Kwon Xuanhe entered the program through a shell company and did not join BH Entertainment, so he couldn't leverage their influence.
Even with his connections and abilities, Park Zhengting was unable to stand alone against the encirclement of numerous companies and the complicity of the TV station.
"The more commotion, the better. It'll only be satisfying when everyone knows about it."
Do you think Kwon Xuanhe hated it? Of course, he did. No one could tolerate this injustice. Now, he could only hope that the power of the general public would shatter this dark secret.
Park Zhengting didn't say anything, just nodded in agreement.
In fact, as soon as he knew that Kwon Xuanhe's chances of debuting were slim, he proactively negotiated with the TV station and the program's production team, temporarily reaching a verbal agreement.
He voluntarily gave up the slim hope of a debut spot in exchange for some resources.
"Let's not talk about these things for now. Go back and prepare for tomorrow's classes. Then there will be a series of auditions."
Before he got out of the car, Park Zhengting didn't forget to remind him, "Remember to think about it specifically when the time comes."
"Understood."
Putting everything else aside, his uncle was truly dedicated to him, arranging everything meticulously.
From the moment he came to South Korea until now, everything has been arranged perfectly without him having to worry about anything.
Just as he thought of this, he received various pieces of information on his phone from Park Zhengting regarding the afternoon acting class.
Kwon Xuanhe smiled, put away his phone, and strode home.
His family was relatively well-off, and his daily expenses allowed him to spend lavishly.
The community he lived in was a mid-tier one, far from being reduced to squeezing into a single room.
The apartment was over thirty pyeong, which translates to just over one hundred square meters. Don't think it's small; this is pure living space without common areas.
Another little-known fact: interior partition walls in Korean houses are often made of plasterboard, and because of their geographical location, very thick walls are not built, which allows for more space.
Living alone even felt a bit spacious.
Kwon Xuanhe made some friends when he came to South Korea, but he didn't make many during the audition program.
The 360-degree cameras in the show made interactions between people full of pretense, and at the same time, his personality didn't quite mesh with that group of trainees; they were merely acquaintances.
As mentioned before, due to his family's work, although he was born in the United States and held American citizenship, he came to China with his family for work reasons.
So he attended international schools in Shanghai for middle and high school, until he applied to an Ivy League university and returned to the United States for college.
He can also speak Chinese and English fluently. Because his crucial formative years were spent studying in China, his personality is also different from traditional Koreans, and his thinking and cognition are broader.
Because his nationality gives him an advantage, he doesn't have to serve in the military, which is a beneficial condition.
The korean wave has high popularity in Asia, so although he didn't explicitly mention participating in the show, most people around him actually knew that he was working in the entertainment industry in South Korea.
Because the house was too quiet, Kwon Xuanhe turned on the TV. A replayed program was airing, and a pleasant melody came from it.
"Fancy You…"
Kwon Xuanhe casually turned his head and watched the girl group dance on the TV screen, nodding involuntarily.
"The center looks too much like a rabbit, no."
Of course, he knew Twice, the most famous and popular girl group in South Korea. The one he was looking at in the center was Lin Nalian.
However, she didn't quite fit his preference.
When the next part of the chorus came, Kwon Xuanhe's eyes lit up again and again.
"This one looks good, and that one also looks good."
Zhou Ziyu's exquisite face was displayed on the screen, and Kwon Xuanhe clicked his tongue in wonder.
"This one is still the best looking."
Kwon Xuanhe was now 'picking' them.
Now is fantasy time!
He never deliberately hid his desires; he entered the entertainment industry for fame and fortune, and naturally, dazzling female stars and idols were part of that.
Who wouldn't want to have a jaw-dropping, passionate romance with female celebrities…