The Steps of Lee Dong Wook
The hearts of women in Korea are once again captivated within an enchanting fantasy that only Lee Dong Wook can create. Lee Dong Wook flaunted his good looks that are the best on this planet with his appearance in tvN’s “Goblin” four years ago, and destroyed the deep-rooted stereotypes about grim reapers. He shook the hearts of women with his role as a gumiho in tvN’s “Tale of the Nine Tailed”, and it is not strange at all if women are bewitched by him once again. Having debuted in 1999, Lee Dong Wook is an actor who has been diligently working in projects, filling up his filmography to the brim for the past 22 years. From SBS’ “My Girl” and “Scent of a Woman” to his recent works like tvN’s “Goblin” and OCN’s “Strangers From Hell”, he has never shied away from standing in front of the public with a new image. Not just that, he is also familiar with variety shows. Because Lee Dong Wook surprises every time with his uncommon choices like SBS’ “Because Lee Dong Wook Wants to Talk” and Mnet’s “Produce X 101”, it is not possible to even guess his spectrum of transformation. We can only wait with anticipation for the unconventional steps that only Lee Dong Wook can take. For Lee Dong Wook who has become a bright light in our days with his always consistent projects, he gently adds more footprints filled with faith in the path that he walks.
Q: We heard that even though you received many offers for projects of the fantasy genre after “Goblin”, you did not accept a single one of them. “Tale of the Nine Tailed” is one of those fantasy shows, was there an obvious attractive point that made you decide to star in it?
Four years have passed since “Goblin” ended. Rather than there being any kind of trigger, I just thought that it would probably be alright to star in a fantasy project now. A male gumiho is a very novel character that hasn’t been seen before so I found it unique. It was a project that we spent almost a year filming and the character Lee Yeon was extremely charming in many aspects, so I still have many lingering feelings.
Q: It was an open ending that drew many differing opinions. Did you like it?
It was an ending that I really liked. And I thought it was a closed ending more than anyone else. It was a totally happy ending for Lee Yeon and Ji Ah. I thought the ending where my eyes changed when I went to catch Samjae was more of a service cut. The main story of “Tale of the Nine Tailed” ended with Lee Yeon and Ji Ah looking at each other at the balcony with my narration “And forever, my first love”. The focal point of the final episode is Lee Yeon returning to Ji Ah’s side and the two of them living happily together. Not just me but also the director and scriptwriter thought it was a happy ending so we were actually more surprised by the reaction of the audience who said it was an open ending.
Q: While working on a project, what kind of ending do you usually prefer?
I think it differs with every drama and character. It’s not easy to meet all the needs of the audience, the intention of the production team and the wishes of the actors. There are instances where the production team may hope for a sad ending but the audience do not feel the same way. I think the most important thing is what kind of message the scriptwriter wants to convey through the story. I’m a person who thinks that the story needs to be implemented well. When I look at the drama “Tale of the Nine Tailed” in its entirety, I think the ending was appropriate and I liked it.
Q: We heard that filming for the movie “Single in Seoul” ended recently. What are your thoughts?
We spent about 3 months filming it. I think I was able to complete it well and enjoyably because I was working with a good director, actors and staff. I’m working with them on a movie after a long time, so I was able to take on this project with a more relaxed heart. In particular, the director is an open-minded person by nature so I shared many conversations with him while filming the movie, and I think a good picture will be able to emerge thanks to that, so I’m looking forward to it a lot.
Q: Returning to movies after a long time, how is the environment like?
It is definitely more relaxing on the set of movies compared to dramas. Compared to “Tale of the Nine Tailed” where I was busy running and rolling around, I don’t have to use a lot of my body here so my body and heart were a little more at ease here.
Q: You seem to have a very close relationship with the director.
The director is 3 years older than me, but he likes to joke a lot so it felt like I was working with a friend. I also knew actress Im Soo Jung before this so it was easy for everyone to get closer and we were able to have fun filming comfortably.
Q: You worked with Im Soo Jung for a very short while in tvN’s “Search WWW”. You get to meet her properly through the movie this time, how was it like working with her?
(Im) Soo Jung noona is a cute and very lovely person in private. But she becomes a very professional person when she’s working. She looks very meticulously and in detail at the parts that I did not even think of. I also got to think more about my character thanks to that. I really liked the time we spent thinking hard in order to deliver a better acting performance and find a new direction through the many conversations we had.
Q: “Single in Seoul” is a romantic comedy. Does it have a special charm when compared to the previous romantic comedies that you’ve done before?
Although it is labelled as a romantic comedy, it is a movie with a lot of melo. When you go to the cinema these days, most of the movies are of the thriller and noir genres. I think love is the most important in life, but I always think it is a pity that such genres do not appear much, so I think that’s why I ended up choosing this project. I also wanted to capture the romantic stories experienced by people around my age.
Q: What kind of image of Lee Dong Wook can we expect to see in this movie?
I will appear as Park Yeong Ho, a successful teacher at an academy who teaches essay writing. He gets to publish a book by chance and meets many related people as a result. This is a story that unfolds within the relationships that I have with them. This is a story that anyone may have experienced before or may experience in the future, so I think it will be a movie that many people will be able to relate to.
Q: What do you think is the most important thing in sustaining a relationship?
I think that will be a sincere heart. I feel this way even more so these days, if you do not treat a person with pretense or lies, you will be able to know the sincerity of each other even if you do not contact or meet each other often.
Q: When is the moment where you feel the certainty that “this is my person”?
I get the certainty that this person is mine when our relationship works even without overdoing on the effort, energy or sincerity that I put in. There are people whom you feel comfortable with even when you don’t do anything and just go with the flow. Having such people around me always gives me strength.
Q: How is Lee Dong Wook’s single life? Is there a routine you’ve set for a perfect lifestyle?
There is nothing special, but I exercise regularly, and I always try to tidy up my surroundings neatly.
Q: In the past, you once said “I still do not have a judgement as to what kind of acting suits me”. Are you now at a stage where you can say that you have made that judgement?
I’m still at a stage of searching for it. But I think I’ve now developed some confidence in the fantasy genre. There are others who find the fantasy genre hard to do even once, but I’ve already done it twice, so I’ve got some know-how. Actually, there is nothing to prepare for fantasy genres even if you want to prepare in advance. Because the job is to create something entirely new. The most important thing is how well I can express freely and find something new within the worldview written by the scriptwriter. These days, the diversity of subject matter has increased, and this is an age where the stories we vaguely dreamed of can now be created on screen. If there is a good story and opportunity, I will want to work together again.
Q: What does Lee Dong Wook think is the biggest charm of actor Lee Dong Wook?
Consistency and sincerity. You need to be sincere if you want to be consistent, and to be sincere means to work hard all the time. I think working in one field, in no matter which field, for more than 20 years is not easy. I was able to continue acting like that because I had been working hard, and I wonder if now is the time for that sincerity to be recognised (laughs).
(Translation note: I noticed that Dong Wook likes to use the word “성설함” [sung-shil-ham] all the time in his interviews. This Korean word literally means “sincerity” or “誠實” in Chinese, but it is strongly tied to the concept of being hardworking and diligent, which the English word “sincere” alone somehow fails to capture the entire meaning. I’m always torn between whether I should use “sincere” or “diligent” in my translation of this word. Although I think “diligent” seems to be a better fit in the context of this interview, I am sticking to the word “sincere” in my translation to be as close as possible to his original choice of words.)
Q: Come to think of it, you have been working on projects continuously without rest in recent years.
I didn’t have any kind of intention, but interesting scenarios kept catching my eye so I couldn’t help but to accept them. Actually I still continue to receive offers from various projects even now and I’m very grateful, but I really want to take a short break now.
Q: Filming for your movie has already ended, what is it that you want to do the most?
I want to try turning off all the alarms and my handphone and not do anything for 3 to 4 days. It has been a very long time since I’ve slept without setting the alarm. Since I’m taking a break, it should be around a week, I want to give myself a break that is entirely for myself. Actually I really want to go fishing. But all the routes are blocked now so it’s a big pity.
Q: You once said that “Because Lee Dong Wook Wants to Talk” is a meaningful experience that you do not regret. When there is an opportunity, will we be able to see Lee Dong Wook as a talk show host again?
I’ve not thought about this in detail, but if there is an opportunity and if I can work together with good people, then you should be able to see Lee Dong Wook standing in a talk show again someday.
Q: A host is someone who needs to bring out something from the guest. What is Lee Dong Wook’s own secret method when it comes to relieving the tension and drawing out answers from the other person?
We will continuously have meetings about the guest 2 to 3 weeks before the broadcast. Until we pick the questions at the final meeting, we will research on a massive amount of material about the guest. I will read about 200 pages of content about the guest before the broadcast. Sometimes there were people who did not talk by following the questions that were set, but since I already knew a lot about the guest, I was able to chat together about various stories according to the situation. When the guest becomes less guarded against me who has a sufficient amount of understanding about the other person, the guest would be the one who makes the talk show even richer in content. Moreover, I tried hard as much as possible to avoid questions that would make the guest feel uncomfortable. I wanted to create a talk show that we could enjoy together in a comfortable atmosphere.
Q: It has been over 20 years since your debut, you always talk about newness in every interview. Is there something new that you are currently looking forward to meeting?
I’m not thinking about other fields other than acting now. I have a strong desire to focus on acting for the time being.
Q: Don’t you feel any pressure about having to show something new every time?
None in particular. Instead, I now know how to wait patiently. I’m referring to waiting with the anticipation that I will meet a piece of work with new and more interesting content. OCN’s “Strangers From Hell” was also a piece of work I got after all that waiting so I was able to have even more fun filming it.
Q: If you were to pick the one thing that makes your heart beat the most these days?
A cool OK sign from the director. It’s a sign that I can go home now (laughs).
Q: What is the most valuable thing you have gained from your 22 years of career as an actor?
The love of the public of course. Without the love of my fans, I think there would actually be no meaning to my existence. I’m able to continue acting because of the love from the public and the acknowledgement they give me. I felt very empty during Christmas last year when “Tale of the Nine Tailed” ended, but I received a lot of support while chatting on Vlive, which was very comforting to me. I am very grateful to them.
Q: You once said that interviews are good because you can look back on yourself at that point in time. How would you like the year 2021 to be remembered in the future?
I hope this will be a year where we can see light at the end of the dark tunnel. Right now, it is very saddening that we seem to be crossing into the stage of giving up after passing the difficult stage. It has been so long till I can’t remember when I last saw a movie in the cinema, and it is also very awkward to hold an awards ceremony while wearing masks. These days where little things in our daily life have become very tough, I hope the situation gets better soon.
Translated from Korean to English by Gabby. Please credit when sharing.
Source: Star1
Check out more behind-the-scene photos at King Kong Naver blog post.
Daegorr 