Minho, K-Pop Idol Of SHINee, Reveals He Learned To Smoke For K-Movie ‘Derailed’ But Was Able To Successfully Quit After Production

In the Korean music industry, musicians who are K-pop idols, especially in manufactured groups, usually have a career that is always fleeting when it comes to their career stability. In K-pop for example, the average lifespan of an idol group is around four years on average. True most newbie fans to the K-pop may think otherwise especially if they listen to idol groups formed under the “Big Three” (SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment, and JYP Entertainment), but there are even more idol groups formed under smaller companies and agencies that barely make it.

Because of this instability being a K-pop idol, many of them will learn a new entertainment trade or skill outside of K-pop just in case their musical careers become fruitless. This can range from hosting, fashion, to solo musical careers. One of the most popular career pursuits after being a K-pop idol, however, is acting in which many former K-pop idols find even more success as actors than musicians. One example is Yoon Eun Hye, who was a member of Baby V.O.X. but is better known for her roles in Princess Hours and Coffee Prince. As for another example, Seo Hyun Jin was the lead vocalist for M.I.L.K. but is better known for her roles in Let’s Eat 2, Another Oh Hae Young, and the currently-airing Romantic Doctor, Teacher Kim.

Sadly, most of the current crop of K-pop idols who act are not that good, a stigma made by the wake of Suzy and Yoona early in their careers. Thankfully, there are new K-pop idol actors who are trying to break out of said stigma, really working hard and proving their worth in K-movies and K-dramas. Eunji of Apink, T.O.P. of Big Bang, Uee of After School, Sooyoung and Yuri of Girls’ Generation are just a few worth naming.

Then there are K-pop idols who are not the best but are trying to do whatever it takes to become decent. Minho of Shinee comes to mind about his recent K-movie Derailed. He had to learn the bad habit of smoking but right afterward, he says he was able to successfully quit after production.

On the November 19th edition of Entertainment Relay, both Minho and Ma Dong Suk, the main co-stars of the upcoming K-movie Derailed, sat down for an interview to discuss details of the upcoming film. According to AllKpop, Minho joked that his natural face and demeanor were not even shown in the movie as he was often covered in bruises and wounds. He even revealed that he had to learn to smoke but also successfully quit right after production.

“My regular face doesn’t show up. My face is bruised up, and I have a lot of scars in the movie. I even curse. I learned how to smoke during the movie as well. I immediately quit after the movie finished.”

Another interesting detail revealed during the interview were the sweetest thing both Minho and Ma Dong Suk have done for a girl which may be a countering to their characters on screen, as reported by Soompi. Minho said he waited a whole day for a girl, but Dong Suk one-upped him by saying he simply handed over his credit card.

Besides the upcoming movie Derailed, Minho is busy with post-release promotions of their fifth studio album 1 of 1 which released last month on October 5. The album has peaked at Number 1 on the Korean Gaon chart, Number 11 on the Japanese chart, Number 14 on the U.S. heat chart, and Number 2 on the U.S. world chart. over 172,000 copies were sold in Korea while over 21,000 copies were sold in Japan. As for the title track song of the same name, it peaked at number four on the Korean chart and number three on the U.S. Billboard World Digital chart.

Minho’s latest K-movie Derailed will release in South Korea on November 30. As for his latest K-pop comeback as a member of Shinee in 1 of 1, K-pop fans, especially those who are Shawols (official fan club of Shinee), can purchase their own copy of the boy band’s fifth studio album at YesAsia. There are multiple versions of the album including the first release, a repackaged version, and the Taiwanese version. There are also options to include a poster with certain album purchases.

[Featured Image by SM Entertainment]