Byeon Woo Seok, riding high on the success of "Lovely Runner," has dominated the drama actor trend index, leaving Cha Eun Woo far behind by more than seven times. He's solidified his status as the "absolute trendsetter."

According to the latest rankings from Rankify on June 25th, Byeon Woo Seok's popularity outshines the combined total of other male actors' trend indices. His popularity is almost monopolistic.

Rankify, which uses its own big data analysis system, examined the rankings for drama actors in the 4th week of June. Byeon Woo Seok topped the list with 83,904 points.

Cha Eun Woo fell to 2nd place with 11,420 points, down by 1,495 points from the previous week. Ji Chang Wook climbed to 3rd place with 6,078 points, marking a rise of 2,944 points.

The breakdown continues with Kim Jung Eun in 4th place (6,075 points), Lee Jae Yong in 5th (5,940 points), Kim Yoo Jung in 6th (5,403 points), Kim Min Seok in 7th (4,977 points), Lee Young Ae in 8th (4,905 points), Lee Sang Yi in 9th (4,822 points), and Jung Sun Ah in 10th (4,767 points).

Byeon Woo Seok's appeal spans across demographics, with 14% male and 86% female fans. In contrast, Cha Eun Woo draws 29% male and 71% female fans, while Ji Chang Wook appeals to 33% male and 67% female fans.

Age-wise, Byeon Woo Seok's popularity is evenly spread: 7% among teens, 23% among those in their 20s, 30% among those in their 30s and 40s, and 10% among those in their 50s.

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SHINee's Key recently shared the story behind his close connection with actor Byeon Woo Seok, revealing how their friendship goes way back to his modeling days.

On May 3, a new video titled "The 77th Episode is Just an Excuse" was released on the popular Tteunteun channel.

During the episode, when Yoo Jae Suk and Kim Dong Hyun joked about Girls' Generation's Yuri possibly having a romantic interest, Key took the opportunity to talk about Byeon Woo Seok.

"It would be nice to always live with love in your heart," Key said. "It's probably similar to the feeling of liking a celebrity. I think it's similar to how people are excited about Byun Woo Seok right now."

Yoo Jae Suk responded, "Woo Seok is really something," to which Key agreed, adding, "Many people have feelings for him. They even set his photo as their phone wallpaper. He's the same age as me."

Yoo Jae Suk then pointed out, "Byeon Woo Seok may have debuted a while ago, but he hasn't been widely known to us for long, so there’s a bit of a gap."

Key shared, "I have many model friends, so I’ve known him since his modeling days. I didn’t know his name back then, but I’ve always been glad to see him doing well."

Curious, Yuri asked, "Were you close to Byeon Woo Seok originally?" Key seemed surprised, replying, "I just said I wasn’t close to him," which caused Yuri to confidently reply, "I was just curious and wanted to hear more details. Why?"

Key laughed, joking, "If you and Dong Hyun hyung become close, the world will end!"

Source: [1]