Kim Soo-hyun to expand career into Japan with D.A.

Kim Soo-hyun [KEYEAST]

Actor Kim Soo-hyun will expand his career into Japan with Japanese entertainment house Digital Adventure (D.A.), according to his Korean management firm KEYEAST on Wednesday.

A press release by KEYEAST stated that the up-and-coming actor has signed with D.A., also managing top Korean actors Bae Yong-joon and Kim Hyun-joong.

D.A. possesses Asia entertainment channel DATV as well as pursuing business in other aspects of the entertainment industry such as dramas, distribution rights, digital and cellular contents.

"Kim Soo-hyun has yet to make an official debut in Japan yet he is already popular enough to have fanpages here...... He has great talent in acting and singing so he has more than enough possibility of becoming the next Hallyu star," an official at D.A. was quoted as saying.

The official also added that Kim's popularity in Japan is expected to soar when KBS TV series "Dream High" officially goes on air in the country.

"Dream High," starring Kim, idol singers Bae Suzy from girl group miss A, Ham Eun-jung from T-ara, Ok Taecyeon and Jang Wooyoung from boy band 2PM and songstress IU, was a joint production between entertainment firms KEYEAST and JYP Entertainment.

It aired in Korea for two months this year starting early January and was about the dreams of students who attend a performing arts school aimed at cultivating celebrities.

The show brought in viewership ratings in the 18 to 20 percent range and has been sold to several countries in Asia including Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Kim, 23, has appeared in several dramas since making his debut on the small screen with a role in MBC's sitcom "Kimchi Cheese Smile" in 2008.

He has been cast in a film tentatively titled "The Thieves," starring several high-profile movie stars including Kim Hye-soo, Jun Ji-hyun and Kim Yun-seok, which will soon crank in.

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Jessica Kim jesskim@