You’ve seen him (and possibly cried with him) in My Love From The Star and It’s Okay To Not Be Okay. Now, he’s returning to our screens as a ‘perfect’ husband in the romance K-drama, Queen of Tears. Yes, we’re talking about actor Kim Soo-hyun. Read on for the show’s cast, plot, and more.
Queen of Tears is currently the top show on Netflix Singapore and its viewership ratings in Korea show no signs of slowing down. Now that the series is four episodes in, we're revealing the easter eggs spotted in the show, along with some plausible theories on how the series will develop. Watch out for spoilers!
Kim Soo-hyun’s drama ‘The Queen of Tears’ is now on Netflix. (Photo from: @goldmedalist_official)
Queen of Tears: plot, cast and more
Actors Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Ji-won at the show’s script reading. (Photo from: @tvn_drama)
Queen of Tears is touted as a romance series that revolves around the love story of a married couple, Baek Hyun Woo (played by Kim Soo-hyun) and Hong Hae In (played by Kim Ji-won). Hyun Woo is the legal director of a conglomerate named Queens Group, while his wife Hae In is the heiress of the Queens Group’s department stores. Events begin to unfold as the couple faces a crisis, three years into their marriage.
Kim Soo-hyun plays Baek Hyun Woo, the legal director of Queens Group. (Photo from: @tvn_drama)
Hyun Woo is regarded as a smart, handsome and ‘perfect’ husband in the eyes of others as he grew up in a privileged background. However, he soon faces difficulties in managing his in-laws and has to overcome conflicts between his work life and personal life.
The series is written by Park Ji-eun, who’s behind K-drama hits such as Crash Landing On You, My Love From The Star and Producer. It will also star Lee Joo Bin (The Tale of Nokdu), Park Sung Hoon (The Glory) and Kwak Dong Yeon (Vincenzo).
Queen of Tears theories
Queen of Tears is not your typical rom-com K-drama. It tackles weighty themes such as illness, family problems, and power play. Do you agree with these theories that we’ve rounded up?
1. The villains in Queen of Tears
Queen of Tears has repeatedly shown that not everything is as it seems. Some of the villains are putting on a disguise and are causing rifts between Baek Hyun Woo and Hong Hae In. Others might be enemies who are out to take down Queens Group.
The second male lead Yoon Eun Seong (The Glory’s Park Sung Hoon) created a bridge between Hong Hae In and the fashion brand Hercyna which she wanted to bring into her department store. But he showed his true colours when it was revealed that he was scheming with the matchmaker or the right-hand person of Hae In’s mother to take down Queens Group as well as break our main couple apart.
The grandfather’s lover Mo Seul Hee (Lee Mi Sook) and Hong Hae In’s sister-in-law Cheon Da Hye (Lee Joo Bin) have portrayed themselves as prim and proper characters at the start of the series. However, Seul Hee acted suspiciously when she said that the grandfather should trust the shaman she talked to. Da Hye also broke from her sweet character and acted differently when her husband was away.
2. Baek Hyun Woo and Hong Hae In are still going through the pain of losing their unborn baby
In a scene in Episode 4 where Hyun Woo attempted to crack Hae In’s passcode, he tried various important dates such as their birthdays and their wedding day. When he was almost out of options, he guessed it and pressed 1031 (or 31 October) — the day when their child was supposed to be born. We then get a heartbreaking flashback of the two finding out that they were pregnant and preparing their child’s room.
haein's passcode being their little one's supposedly birthday, and hyunwoo remembering it as an important date. both of them still going through the pain but they try so hard not to burden each other :( #QueenOfTears #QueenOfTearsEp4 pic.twitter.com/Mg9kBBw4SN
— ً (@soohyawn) March 17, 2024
It seems that the two are trying to live with the pain of losing their baby in their own ways, and this may be one of the reasons behind the cracks in their relationship.
3. The reason why Hong Hae In’s mother hates her daughter
Hong Hae In’s mother Kim Seon Hwa (Na Young Hee) barges into her daughter’s home and berates her for being selfish. She blames her finding out that Yoon Eun Seong doesn’t want to invest in her son’s business endeavour (but Hae In has no idea about this).
Hae In almost falls after her mother’s accusations but Hyun Woo catches her just in time. He later repeats that she should tell her family about her illness. Hae In says that she doesn’t want to because her parents have lost a child before.
"I don't want to shock them. My parents already lost a child. So why scare them?" - Hong Haein
— 엘 (@elleyeyow) March 18, 2024
The fact that she addressed her brother as a child of their parent hits different knowing she lost hers too 😭#QueenOfTearsEp4 #QueenOfTears pic.twitter.com/YroEGnfuQ6
In an earlier episode, while Hae In’s sickness takes over her, we see a flashback scene at sea where she seems to be drowning and someone saves her. It’s possible that her sibling died while saving her, and her mother blames her for it.
Queen of Tears: release date and where to watch in Singapore
Do you also have the same theories above? Catch Queen of Tears on Netflix which started airing on 9 March. Episodes 1 to 4 are now available and succeeding episodes will be out every Saturday and Sunday.
(Cover photos from: @tvn_drama, twitter.com/CJnDrama)
This article was first published on 6 February 2024. Last updated: 18 March 2024.
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