Lee Hyeri's lucky road to stardom
Cast of tvN's "Reply 1988” on its poster
As viewers wait sadly for the last episode of the nation’s hottest TV drama “Reply 1988” this Friday/ Saturday, reports suggest that Lee Hyeri got the role of high school heroine Seong Deok-seon because of the MBC’s military reality show “Real Men: Women’s Army Special.”
“There is a rumor among TV broadcasters that Lee was hired for Seong’s role based on her performance in ‘Real Men’,” MSN Entertainment said. “Lee’s vitality and attractiveness seen on ‘Real Men’ led to her becoming the heroine. In other words, her appearance on the reality show was undoubtedly critical.”
Lee, who debuted as a member of K-pop band Girl’s Day in 2010, got her big break in the first season of “Real Men” in January 2015.
On the show, female celebrities are invited to experience the hardships of a military training camp.
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Lee in a scene from MBC"s "Real Men: Women's Army" in 2014
“Lee is considered by those in show business as a star who most benefited from ‘perfect timing’,” a report says. “She leveraged nationwide fame gained from “Real Men” to star in ‘Reply 1988’.”
The report says that as a result of “Reply 1988,” Lee has featured in, or will feature in, 28 advertisements worth an estimated 6 billion won.