Writer Yoon Soo-jung of SBS 'Haunted Palace' expressed the highest satisfaction with the performances of Yoo Seung-jae, Kim Ji-yeon, and Kim Ji-hoon, increasing expectations for the first broadcast.
The new Friday-Saturday drama 'Haunted Palace' (written by Yoon Soo-jung and directed by Yoon Sung-sik), which will air on April 18 (Friday) at 9:50 p.m. following 'Buried Hearts', is a fantasy romance about the physical struggle between Yeori, a shaman who rejects her fate as a medium, and Yoon-gap, her first love, trapped in the body of the legendary creature Gang-cheol, as they confront the grudge-filled dragon. Having gained trust through his successful direction of dramas such as 'Mr. Queen', 'Lee Soon Shin is the Best', 'Bridal Mask', and 'Dae Joyeong', director Yoon Sung-sik has teamed up with writer Yoon Soo-jung, who wrote 'The King's Face' and 'Cheer Up!', and the fresh casting of Yoo Seung-jae (playing Yoon-gap/Gang-cheol), Kim Ji-yeon (playing Yeori), and Kim Ji-hoon (playing Lee Jung) is raising expectations.
Through 'Haunted Palace', writer Yoon revealed, "The first idea came from working on the jointly written work 'The King's Face'. I thought, 'There must be many vengeful spirits in the palace' after seeing the materials at that time. A line I've kept for a long time became the starting point of 'Haunted Palace', which I began planning about five years ago," explaining the background of its creation. Yoon also added, "The setting of 'a romance over the physical struggle between a legendary creature and a shaman' was conceived during the process of contemplating how to make a historical drama with occult elements appealing to the public," stimulating curiosity.
'Haunted Palace' contains abundant genre-specific fun, from a romance based on mutual grudges to court intrigue and exorcism fantasy. Yoon noted, "I was most focused on maintaining a balanced harmony between the genres," stating that, "particularly, a romance and the occult are genres that are hard to mix like oil and water, but creating a structure that connects these two genres closely and without discomfort was the biggest goal at the start of planning."
Yoon shared insights into the study process of creatures appearing in the work, including 'Gang-cheol' and 'one-legged spirits' and 'Su-sal spirits'. Yoon mentioned, "I personally enjoy the process of weaving together the hidden stories behind the materials I review. There are countless books and films that inspired me, but primarily, I derived materials from classics like 'Awooyadam', 'Seongho Saseol', and 'Cheon Ye-rok'. I specifically began to create a concrete story after reading the part in 'Awooyadam' where a spirit, known to be eight feet tall, existed in the palace." Additionally, Yoon conveyed that basic studies on shamanism were incorporated through excellent documentaries such as 'The Medium - Reconciliation of the Living and the Dead', 'In Between', 'Manshin', and the autobiography of shaman Kim Geum-hwa, as well as many inspirations from books like Lauren Kendall's 'Shamans, Women, Spirits' and traditional cultural school classes, highlighting the visual extravagance of K-creatures to be showcased in 'Haunted Palace.'
Yoon stated, "Yoon-gap (Gang-cheol) and Yeori are very difficult characters to portray. Yoon-gap (Gang-cheol) must show comedy and action, as well as deep emotional performances, while Yeori must possess a hero-like charisma in facing off against evil spirits and a loveliness appropriate for the romantic comedy genre. After watching the edited version, I was really pleased to see Yoo Seung-jae and Kim Ji-yeon perfectly embody their roles."
In particular, "Yoo Seung-jae's subtle ad-libs and comedic performance were explosive. Personally, I found his comedic acting captivating, and even when playing an evil spirit with a chilling gaze, he was really impressive. His range as an actor is broad, making me look forward to his future work. Kim Ji-yeon has such deep and lovely eyes, capturing much painful history and depth in her gaze. In reality, she is quite a delicate actress, but I was surprised by her commanding presence on screen," Yoon commented. Furthermore, he mentioned, "The director previously said, 'The chemistry between the two actors is really great; I constantly want to see them together on screen,' and I completely agree. The scenes created by the two actors together were truly lovely."
Meanwhile, regarding actor Kim Ji-hoon, Yoon expressed, "Upon hearing the casting news, I expanded the king's importance in the overall story. And regarding the acting aspect, I wrote without any worries at all." He also revealed, "On the last shooting day, when I visited the set, Kim Ji-hoon said in an exhausted and hoarse voice, 'I poured everything I had.' There are quite a few scenes in the later part of the drama that require passionate acting from the king, Lee Jung, and I'm really looking forward to how they turned out."
Along with that, Yoon expressed gratitude toward director Yoon Sung-sik, stating, "With the high degree of difficulty in action scenes and a mix of various genres, I heard that everyone truly struggled on set. The shooting period involved extreme heat and cold, causing me much concern. Nonetheless, Director Yoon Sung-sik always encouraged me by saying the script was interesting and supported the direction of the story I wanted to tell until the end. Through meetings with the director, I was able to supplement the lacking script, and I relied on him a lot."
Moreover, Yoon stated, "From the early planning stage to the moment the final script was handed in, everyone I met was exceptionally skilled in their positions and possessed sincerity towards the project while being gentle. I even found myself thinking, 'How can this be? Is it because the nature of the work allows the ancestral spirits to help us?' I am deeply grateful for the chance to collaborate with such wonderful people," proudly sharing the strong teamwork of the 'Haunted Palace' team.
Finally, Yoon expressed, "'Haunted Palace' is a project I've been preparing for a long time, and I'm very excited and nervous about it. Although I'm still not completely satisfied with my script, I did my best to write it without regrets. I'd appreciate it if others enjoy the work that the production team and I have prepared with all our hearts."
The drama kingdom SBS will uniquely present the fantasy historical romance 'Haunted Palace,' which is set to air for the first time on April 18 (Friday) at 9:50 p.m.
[Photo provided by SBS 'Haunted Palace']
[OSEN]