Actor Jinyoung said that saying goodbye to "Ms. Incognito" was a happy time without regrets.
On the 4th afternoon at a restaurant in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, a finale interview was held with Jinyoung, the lead actor of the Genie TV original drama "Ms. Incognito."
The ENA Monday-Tuesday drama "Ms. Incognito" is a crime romance about a poor female bodyguard (played by Jeon Yeo-been) who, dreaming of a big break, enters into a contract marriage with a terminally ill chaebol chairman and must change her identity and survive for three months to avoid those seeking a huge inheritance. "Ms. Incognito," which started on Sept. 29 with a 2.4% rating, climbed through word of mouth and recorded 7.1% in its final episode, securing the second-highest viewership in ENA Monday-Tuesday drama history (Nielsen Korea, nationwide paid households).
Facing the final episode, Jinyoung told reporters, "If the ratings go over 7%, we'll take a reward vacation," expressing his wish that it would surpass 7%. At the time, episode 11 had recorded 6.3%, just shy of the 7% breakthrough. Jinyoung said, "The director worries a lot about ratings. He's such a humane and kind person. People often call him an 'Egennam' (exemplary man). He's the ultimate Egennam, kind and gentle. He also does a lot of searching. If you look at the director's Instagram, there's so much story. Sometimes 30 posts go up in a day. They're all about 'Busemi.' If there's good news, he posts it. He loves and cares for the drama," he began.
He continued, "He shares the ratings every morning. The ratings come out around 7:30. When there's a message then, it feels good. Today the director messaged, '6.3%!!' and told me to enjoy the interview. We decided to watch the final episode together with the cast and the director. No matter the outcome, I think today's mood will be happy," he revealed.
Recalling "Ms. Incognito" as a "happy filming site," Jinyoung said, "I've done many projects, but this time I wanted to go to the set. I've worked with our manager head of team for almost 10 years, and even the head of team said, 'I want to go to the set today.' He said it was so fun. Basically, the director, actors, and staff were all such good people. So there was never a bad atmosphere and we always worked with smiles. At times like that, you think, 'I hope this project does well.' I thought if we worked so happily, viewers would notice. Since they love it so much, it feels even better," expressing pride.
Asked about the ending since it was the final episode airing, Jinyoung replied, "a happy ending," and said, "It's a happy ending, but to me the final epilogue felt like it opened the door to season 2. But (Jeon Yeo-been) unnie seemed to say no. As a conclusion, it's fairly closed, but such an epilogue came out..." He added, "I don't know whether season 2 will come out. I don't know if I'll be needed, but I hope it does. If season 2 comes out, it's proof the work did well, so leaving other thoughts aside, I hope season 2 comes," he wished.
He immediately laughed, showing a sudden dip in confidence, saying, "The director didn't particularly mention anything. Thinking about it, the final epilogue might just come out naturally. But it's possible to think of it as a season 2 teaser. I don't really know the intent..."
In the series, Jinyoung played Jeon Dong-min, a single dad who grows strawberries in Muchang and raises his son. Having played a father for the first time in this work, Jinyoung said, "The single dad role itself was a challenge for me. In my previous work, 'You Are the Apple of My Eye,' I wore a school uniform, so the gap was huge. When I got the script I thought, 'Single dad? I've never done that role, what should I do?'" He added, "But as I read it, I thought the reversal could be interesting. Since I don't have a dad image, having this person play it might come across as a surprising charm, so I became more interested," explaining his reason for taking the role.
But because he had never been a father, he said he struggled with not knowing paternal love. Jinyoung said, "I really like the child. But liking someone like an older brother and liking as a father are different, so that was very difficult. I worried a lot and tried hard to get close to the child actor who played my son," and added, "But in terms of satisfaction, I still feel far off. Maybe about 60 points? I'm somewhat disappointed. I still see lacking parts and awkward parts, but I felt and learned a lot while working on this project and gained much, so I have no regrets," he revealed.
Asked what he had grown in through this work, he said, "My approach to acting has slightly changed." Jinyoung explained, "Wanting to act very well is always a basic goal I have. I think that's something you should naturally hold. What's changed is that I want to be someone who has everyday conversations. I really want to be that natural. I want people to feel, 'This person isn't delivering lines, they're having a conversation.' That's my wish. So this time I tried to relax as much as possible. Of course there are lines and acting, but I tried to understand the situation and think I'm speaking to this person to relax as much as possible," he said.
He continued, "Dong-min's love doesn't have a huge backstory, but he suddenly falls in love and his feelings grow. So he comes to like the person purely for who they are, without hoping for or wanting any conditions. Because of that, I thought it should be portrayed very plainly," and said, "Young-ran (played by Jeon Yeo-been) has a lot to be desired. She has money, she's pretty, and has many good things. So if done wrong, it could look like he's deliberately aiming, so I wanted to show simply that he truly and purely likes this person without any of that," he said.
Besides being a "single dad," Jeon Dong-min also has a setting as a "mad dog." Jinyoung said, "Viewers saw Dong-min fighting and thought, 'What's with him? Why is he so good at fighting?' He's a former national taekwondo athlete, and although that 'mad dog' side isn't fully shown, Dong-min seems like a righteous person. Whenever Kang Sung-tae (played by Yoon Dae-yeol) causes a ruckus in Muchang, Dong-min steps in and fights, and when everyone complacently hands Busemi (Kim Young-ran/Jeon Yeo-been) over, he becomes even more suspicious. In those parts, the 'mad dog' side subtly appeared. Even when fighting, there wouldn't be many occasions, but he charges in like a bulldozer. I liked that character trait of Dong-min. He's not one to weigh things and think, 'What should I do?'; he just rushes in, which felt like a 'Tetonam' and I loved it," he joked.
When asked about similarities between Dong-min and himself, he emphasized, "Dong-min tends to grumble even when he has some affection for (Kim Young-ran). If it were me, I don't think I'd do that. If I liked someone, I'd protect them rather than say bad things. But when Dong-min starts liking someone, he becomes too bulldozer-like. He goes recklessly, which is cool, but although I'm straightforward, I'm not to that extent."
He added, "Dong-min tends to blurt out what's inside whether it's good or bad. I can't do that. I keep things inside and can't speak; I bottle it up. That's not good. I get stressed alone. As I get older, it gets worse. I find it harder to speak. Because I care so much about the other person, if I think something will upset them, I absolutely can't say it. I worry a lot about how the other person will react," he confessed.
Playing a character with a different personality, he said, "It was fun but difficult." He said, "If the personalities were the same, I could act like myself, but since the differences exist, it felt awkward at times. When I snapped at Young-ran, I thought, 'How can he say something like that?'" He then named Jinu from 'You Are the Apple of My Eye' as the character most similar to him. Jinyoung said, "It's similar to my childhood, so I acted more naturally and comfortably," and added, "When choosing projects, you can't always do only ones that fit you. Even if you're doing roles that suit you, as an actor there are things you want to achieve and different sides you need to show, so sometimes you choose a project thinking, 'I should try this once,'" expressing a spirit of challenge.
Asked what he wants to achieve, Jinyoung answered, "to become a truly natural actor." He said, "There are actors who act so naturally it feels like they're just speaking, like senior actors Song Kang-ho, Park Jung-min, and Son Suk-ku. Sometimes they make you feel like it's not lines. Becoming like that is one of my new goals," he said.
However, his desire for awards has gradually diminished. Jinyoung said, "I stopped thinking about awards. I just want to enter a project and do well, and if good things happen, do them well. I think that's how I've lived." He added, "In the past I wanted to become something, to succeed, to go to film festivals and win awards. Back then I thought I could do more dramas, like 'three projects a year.' But at some point those thoughts disappeared. There's no particular trigger; it's just time," he said candidly, drawing laughter.
As he said goodbye to "Ms. Incognito," when asked about memorable reactions, Jinyoung picked the review that called it "well-made." He said, "Actually, whenever I'm asked what reaction I'd like, I say I want to hear 'well-made.' I'm satisfied to have heard that from even one person," and added, "I still want to do better until the end, but I have no regrets about this project and it will remain a work I was very happy with, so I think I'll watch the final episode happily. It's like a gift to me. It was a challenge, but when a difficult project gets a good response and does well, there's nothing happier," he expressed satisfaction.
Jinyoung, who debuted in 2011 as a member of boy group B1A4 and began his acting career the following year with the MBC drama 'The Thousandth Man,' has been active as an 'actor-idol.' Asked the secret to his 14-year long run without major scandals, he laughed, "Maybe it's because I'm cautious. I haven't really thought about it, but I've just gone with the flow. Thinking, 'Isn't this how it should be?' has led me without controversy. I can't say I'm completely spotless, but thankfully I'm happily doing well, so I'm grateful," he said.
Regarding plans for music activities, he said, "I promised to release songs and promote as a singer, but being busy as an actor I couldn't keep that promise and I'm very sorry. Still, a song I made will appear in the final broadcast of 'Busemi.'" He added, "It's a bit of an excuse, but please postpone the promise. Please wait a little more until early next year."
He said, "I like to do one thing perfectly, so doing things piecemeal when I'm busy doesn't satisfy me. When I have a bit more time, I want the songs to be truly good," and added, "I'm sorry and personally regretful. If I had been a bit more 'J,' I would have released 10 songs. My MBTI is 'P,' so it's my tendency. When I'm focused somewhere, I can get obsessive and that's how it goes. It's such a regret." He then promised, "Because I love music so much, my music will continue to come out," pledging to keep doing music.
[Photo] OSEN reporter Min Kyung-hoon
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