(continued from interview ②) The production team of 'Just Makeup' expressed gratitude toward Lee Hyori.
On the 18th an interview with Coupang Play variety show Just Makeup's Shim Woo-jin and Park Sung-hwan, PD, was held at a cafe in Samcheong-dong, Seoul.
Coupang Play variety show Just Makeup is a massive makeup survival in which makeup artists who represent K-beauty worldwide fiercely compete with their own unique styles.
The final episode, released on the 7th (Friday), brought the long journey of the survival to a spectacular close, and after its release it ranked first in variety show viewing satisfaction (source: Consumer Insight), was Coupang Play's most popular work for five consecutive weeks, received an IMDb score of 8.5, entered the OTT top 10 in seven overseas countries, and drew explosive global reaction, closing with the title "the most talked-about variety show of the second half of 2025."
In particular, the production team expressed thanks to Lee Hyori, who served as MC. Shim Woo-jin, PD, recalled the behind-the-scenes of recruiting Lee Hyori, saying, "At first, when we started the project, there was news about it. Originally there was no MC. We were going to do it with just judges, but Lee Hyori has worked with our company for a long time. She called and said, 'You're doing a K-beauty program—how can you do it without me?' We had been thinking about it, but we were so happy she raised it first. During a meeting we created the MC position and shaped a role that fit Hyori nuna, and went with a one-MC format," he recalled.
Park Sung-hwan, PD, also said, "We originally suggested she be a judge, but she felt judging would be burdensome, so we asked her to be the MC. After all, she has been having her makeup done since the '90s for about 30 years. We thought she might be the person in Korea who has had the most makeup done, so we made the offer. We felt the expert's domain should be left to an expert, so we asked her to become the face of the program," he explained.
Shim PD, asked about "the moment when Lee Hyori's influence felt real," said, "As a survival MC, explaining the rules is basic. But everything else felt tangible. She energized the viewers. If you watch the round 1 footage, originally the MC only needed to say pass or fail, but she went around doing interviews. By doing that and talking with the participants, it was so appreciated. The contestants were frozen, but she would go and talk to them even during breaks—at moments like that I thought, 'Lee Hyori is truly Lee Hyori.' The show proceeded much more richly than the script we had written," he said.
Shim PD also cited "Lee Hyori's beauty" as a driving factor of the program's popularity and added, "We were always so grateful because even when we shot everything for round 1 in one day—the face-to-face scene, the round 1 scene, and the next mission reveal—she changed makeup, hair and outfits each time. On the same day she changed three times. I need to look different for people to enjoy watching. She did far more than her appearance fee warranted; even though we mostly shot from morning to dawn, she would show up with her hair and makeup and outfit changed every time the round or shoot changed."
Park PD said, "I worked with Lee Hyori several times on previous projects, and over time I realized those shows brought out her raw side—Guesthouse, Camping Club, and so on. After seeing her like that for a while, suddenly I saw her all made up for the first time. Someone I knew became, 'Oh right! She was superstar Lee Hyori!'—I realized that for the first time in nearly 10 years and was surprised," he joked.
[Photo] Provided by Coupang Play
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