(continued from interview ②) EXO member and actor Doh Kyung Soo shared his thoughts on working with Lee Kwang Soo in "The Manipulated".
On the afternoon of the 11th, a wrap-up interview with Doh Kyung Soo, the lead actor of the Disney+ original drama "The Manipulated," was held at a cafe in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul.
"The Manipulated" is an action drama in which Tae-jung (played by Ji Chang Wook), who led an ordinary life, one day is wrongly implicated in a heinous crime and sent to prison, and upon learning that everything was planned by Johan (played by Doh Kyung Soo), carries out revenge against him.
That day, Doh Kyung Soo praised Lee Kwang Soo, who played Baek Do Kyung in the work, saying, "Actually, I thought this was the first time I teamed up with Kwang Soo hyung since 'It's Okay, That's Love.' Seeing Kwang Soo hyung act like that in person felt new. What surprised me was that, having only seen his everyday side, seeing him truly immerse himself in acting on set made me think, 'This isn't the hyung I knew.' I knew he was good at acting, but his momentary concentration was unbelievably strong. I had a lot to learn from him," he said admiringly.
The character Baek Do Kyung in the work is somewhat irritating. Doh Kyung Soo also agreed, saying, "He came across that way. He was really annoying to watch." He said, "Shouldn't the role of Dokyung be something viewers dislike? It should be unpleasant from the audience's perspective, and it was really unpleasant on set too. I thought he truly digested the character well," and added, "When you act with close friends, I expected there might be things like not being able to watch because it's too familiar, but on the contrary I felt more focused. I think it's because he acted so well," he said.
When asked jokingly, "You must have enjoyed the scene where you kill Baek Do Kyung," Doh Kyung Soo joked, "I enjoyed it. It relieved some stress," prompting laughter. He said, "Before filming I thought, 'What if it's cheesy,' or 'Because we're close I might not be able to look him in the eye,' but strangely I was more focused," he said.
Also, in response to the joking remark, "You planted Lee Kwang Soo in the cast," he confessed, "Absolutely not. I didn't know hyung was appearing. The writer and director gave him the role. I was surprised when I heard hyung was appearing. I said, 'Hyung is doing it? That's great,'" he revealed.
However, coincidentally, "The Manipulated" was released around the same time as the tvN variety show "Kong Kong Pang Pang," leading some viewers to say they couldn't immerse themselves because of his variety image. Doh Kyung Soo explained, "Actually, when we filmed 'The Manipulated' we didn't know it would air at the same time. It was supposed to come out much earlier, but as it was postponed bit by bit it ended up overlapping."
He added, "I thought there were pros and cons. Some people might have seen 'Kong Kong Pang Pang' and thought, 'A project came out? I'll watch it,' and others might have seen 'The Manipulated' and thought, 'He did a variety show? I'll watch it.' I think that contrast of 'he's like this in daily life but different in the work' produced a better effect. Of course, on the flip side some people said, 'Because he's so funny on variety, I can't concentrate.' But I thought that's also a good effect, so I wasn't worried," he said frankly. (Continued in interview ④)
[photo] Disney+
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