Actor Jung Soo-bin expressed gratitude for the intense interest in "a benevolent competition."
Jung Soo-bin delivered a stellar performance as Woo Seul-gi in the STUDIO X+U drama "a benevolent competition" (written by Kim Tae-hee and Min Yeo-ji, directed by Kim Tae-hee), a character who grows by filling each other’s deficiencies amid friendship and desire.
"A benevolent competition" is a mystery girl thriller that reveals the individual desires of friends surrounding the suspicious death of Woo Seul-gi's (Jung Soo-bin) father, who was a test item creator for the College Scholastic Ability Test, as she transfers to the elite 1% Choihwa High School in South Korea, where fierce entrance exam competition unfolds. It is not just a simple school story; rather, the show presents a tightly woven narrative and artistic direction centered on various desires related to the mysterious death of the test item creator and entrance exams, delivering a high level of viewer immersion. Particularly, through the dynamic relationships between characters that fluctuate between friendship and solidarity, trust and doubt, envy and admiration, it has been lauded for pioneering a new genre of mystery girl thrillers.
"A benevolent competition" shattered records in all categories, including the number of views on U+tv and U+mobiletv, number of viewers, and new audience inflow, right upon release, dominating domestic trending charts and showcasing remarkable achievements. Moreover, it topped global OTT platforms in countries like Japan and Taiwan and received critical acclaim, surpassing a rating of 9 on the largest global review site, IMDb. It also claimed a position in the top 10 of the buzz chart published by the K-content analysis platform Fundex from its first release, even reaching second place in the TV and OTT integrated drama category on the chart announced on March 5. Along with this, Lee Hye-ri (playing Yoo Je-i) and Jung Soo-bin (as Woo Seul-gi) ranked third and ninth, respectively, on the actress buzz chart, demonstrating their immense popularity, further evidenced by their rise to number one on Tving.
In the drama, Jung Soo-bin, who played the role of Woo Seul-gi, sometimes collaborated and sometimes confronted Yoo Je-i and others in her quest to unravel the mystery surrounding her father's death. She adeptly varied her expressions, voice, and gestures according to her counterpart and circumstances, enhancing the drama's weight. Having left a deep impression through her role in "a benevolent competition," Jung Soo-bin has recently achieved success with the newly released film "It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay!" establishing herself as a rising star.
In an interview with OSEN, Jung Soo-bin said of "a benevolent competition," "I always hear comments about it being full of dopamine, and I think that's the charm of 'a benevolent competition.' The structure of the work itself is special, and the running time allows it to be watched before bed or during commutes, which I believe has contributed to its viewership. Also, looking back now, each character came across as attractive because the actors performed well, and I think all those factors have led to our success."
Jung Soo-bin continued, "We said we would do our best while working, focusing on each moment and scene we acted in, and it seems that people viewed it positively. I didn’t expect or hope for any particular outcome, but I feel truly fortunate that such good results have come out."
Jung Soo-bin emphasized that the good results stemmed from everyone engaging in "a benevolent competition" as implied by the title. He stated, "At first, I felt a sense of incongruity with the terms benevolence and competition. For competition to exist, there needs to be someone to compete against, and rather than a competition that tramples over others to win, I thought that learning from others and gaining knowledge together could also be a form of competition. I realized that the word competition holds a positive power that resonates well with the idea of benevolence." He added, "While filming, we engaged in a benevolent competition within our process, but I hope that the world also embraces more benevolent competition. In the end, I included a hope that viewers of our work would gain the strength to engage in 'a benevolent competition.'"
As Jung Soo-bin noted, "a benevolent competition" had its challenges with accessibility, yet ultimately achieved success, even claiming the number one spot on Tving. It was mentioned that not only domestically but also internationally, many celebrities watched it. Notably, Lee Je-hoon referenced this during an appearance on the YouTube channel managed by Lee Hye-ri, acknowledging that he previously worked with Jung Soo-bin on MBC's "Investigation Team Leader 1958." Jung Soo-bin reflected on Lee Je-hoon’s shoutout, saying, "I received a message saying he was watching. Even though it’s a platform that’s hard to access, he acknowledged my efforts and said, 'You’ve worked really hard,' which truly surprised me."
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[OSEN]