It has been two weeks since Lee Kwangsoo has permanently left his post as a regular member of Running Man, one of South Korea's longest-running variety shows aired in the public television. Since then, Running Man has suffered from a succession of low ratings immediately after he exited from the show.

Lee Kwangsoo was loved by the fans and the public for being an actor who does not fake it. He shows his emotions and his way of throwing jokes and playing dirty towards the members and guests have endeared him and therefore, made him a total icon related to the show. Personally, I love it when he flat out curses at the members whenever he gets frustrated or mad. This shows that he is unapologetically himself, which is a great thing to actors and a breath of fresh air to everyone appearing in Korean television.

After eleven long years, Lee Kwangsoo has decided to step down from his regular position in Running Man, citing personal reasons and required rest for his injuries that he sustained throughout his acting and television career. Most fans did not take the news well, and at the end of the final episode with him, everyone was crying and feeling sad because of the unexpected situation.

I cannot help but think that the reason behind his exit in Running Man can be attributed to the fact that movie and television actors need to maintain a reserved and formal image most of the time for them to book acting gigs and receive love calls from writers, producers, and directors. Staying for a long time in a variety show, where a different set of rules are at play, can harm an actor's chances of getting a drama or a movie because of the comedic image he or she has in variety shows.

Nevertheless, the producers should do something to alleviate the noticeably big gap Lee Kwangsoo had left. Either they need to scout for a replacement or keep on inviting interesting and equally funny guests each episode, they have to save what's left of Running Man. Add to the fact that there is a growing number of people who are getting sick of watching Running Man, some of them switching to MBC's King of Masked Singer or KBS's 2 Days 1 Night for their Sunday entertainment fix.

Running Man needs to step up and keep up with the times.