A climax of desire is coming.
On the 10th in the afternoon at The Saint in Sindorim-dong, Guro District, Seoul, ENA's new Monday-Tuesday drama Climax held a production press conference. Director Lee Ji-won attended the press conference along with actors Ju Jihoon, Ha Jiwon, Nana, and Oh Jung-se, and they talked.
Climax is a work that portrays prosecutor Bang Tae-seop, who jumped into a cartel of power to stand at the top position in Korea, and the fierce survival drama of those surrounding him, and director Lee Ji-won, who has drawn attention for delicate yet intense direction, took the helm.
Director Lee Ji-won will take on her first drama direction through Climax. Attending a production press conference for the first time since Miss Baek in 2018, Director Lee Ji-won said, I filmed one more work after Miss Baek was released in 2018, but it wasn't released and Climax is coming to viewers first, so I feel nostalgic. I kind of feel like I'm going to vomit. Rather than feeling nervous about this moment, it's a work made with all our heat and sincerity and blood, sweat and tears, so I'm excited and curious to see how people will receive it.
The director said, In fact, I tried to work entirely with film staff from assembling the staff, and drama work was different in that we had to shoot many scenes in a short time. I tried to produce the highest quality like in film. I painstakingly worked to meet the expectations set by the title Climax for each episode, and tried to capture the actors' nuanced emotions.
Regarding what was particularly difficult, she added, Writing the script was the hardest. Because I wrote under a set title, I felt pressured and it became difficult to write a climax for each episode, and I felt burnout for the first time in my life. Writing eight times the volume of a film was too hard. It's an ending gourmet.
Joining the cast are reliable performers such as Ju Jihoon, Ha Jiwon, Nana, Oh Jung-se, and Cha Joo-young, who will densely portray the deadly relationships of figures with different desires and beliefs in the face of power and love. Ju Jihoon opened his mouth, I play prosecutor Bang Tae-seop. He is a character who, while getting entangled in various incidents, has no connections, no network, and no family, suffers, and, seeing no chance, struggles with great ambition to try to climb up.
Next, Ha Jiwon explained, The character Choo Sang-ah that I play has a past that was glamorous and a present that is very unstable and shaken, coexisting emotionally. I played actress Choo Sang-ah, who portrays the desire to return to the top and coldness, and the inner turmoil of a person shaken within that.
Nana said, I am Bang Tae-seop's secret informant. My role in this drama is a big spoiler, so it's a character I can't exactly describe. So she's a figure wrapped in a veil. If you watch the drama, you might know Jeong-won.
Oh Jung-se revealed, The character Kwon Jong-wook that I played is a second-generation chaebol who sometimes wields the power I have and sometimes is swayed by power. Hearing this, Ju Jihoon introduced, He is Cha Joo-young's son, and Oh Jung-se added, She is my mother. On set she kept saying mom, mom, which made people laugh.
The actors each explained why they chose Climax. At this point Nana said, First, I felt the script was honest and bold, so I read it very enjoyably. I thought it might be the genre I wanted to try. I thought many people might be thirsty for this kind of genre, and the role Hwang Jeong-won seemed to show a new side of me. The director loved me so much that I really wanted to work with the director.
Oh Jung-se asked, Did you love me too? and Director Lee Ji-won answered with a volley of compliments. Oh Jung-se replied, I was happy to confirm it and worked with pleasure. The most difficult part seemed to be what you said about writing the script. When I read the book, it was written in an engaging, easy way with various characters and events, so I was drawn to it.
Ju Jihoon will compete around the same time as his close friend actor Ha Jung-woo. At the phrase 'a matchup that's not a matchup,' Ju Jihoon joked, A matchup that's not a matchup isn't a matchup, right? and added, We met recently and said it's doing well. I also hope it goes well for Jung-woo hyung; I wonder if Korean dramas will get encouragement from the assessment that they're entertaining. I casually said that going in a row feels good, and when I met the Has the chemistry was good.
Also, Ju Jihoon makes a special appearance in How to become a building owner in Korea. When asked which of the two works he hoped would do better, he laughed, Do I have to say? and answered, I'm the lead in this one and a cameo there. You can't postpone the essence.
Meanwhile, when asked if Ha Jiwon empathized with the actress role in the drama, she confessed, Before answering this, I actually found it harder to play an actress character as an actress. And because I erased Ha Jiwon the actress and played Choo Sang-ah, every moment was hard and I monitored more carefully with the director.
She continued, While playing Choo Sang-ah and watching the character Sang-ah, I rather felt emotions as an actress, and if there's a similar empathy, I too have been questioning since about seven or eight years ago, as an actor and as a person, who am I, why am I acting, and I'm in the process of riding a roller coaster.
Ha Jiwon said, I think I approached acting in Climax with a feeling more like a rookie. The emotions were hard, but going to the set as an actor was also fun. I think Climax will bring me a lot more as I continue acting.
With the chemistry between Ju Jihoon and Ha Jiwon, who will play a married couple, drawing interest, Ju Jihoon said, I liked it. I'm an older adult, and while there is fresh romantic-comedy melodrama, things can't always be good; there's disappointment and trust, and weighing relationships like will they betray me at the last moment, I got help from my older sister, she received me well, and I was thankful and we filmed well.
Ha Jiwon also said, I have done light rom-com melodrama before, but this intense melodrama is the first for me. It seemed to fit very well with Ju Jihoon; he was cool and honest and our acting rhythm was great. We didn't have to worry about accommodating each other, and because he accepted without hesitation, acting was fun, emotional scenes aligned without many takes, and we filmed them well.
Following Honor, Climax answered a question about expected figures. Director Lee Ji-won replied, Moving from film to series, I tried to escape the pressure of scores, but I got caught up in ratings. Because I have expectations for these actors, I think ENA might see its best figures in history.
The actors looked surprised, and Park Kyung-rim retorted, Will you compete with Extraordinary Attorney Woo? Director Lee Ji-won confidently said, 20%? Why couldn't we reach that?
Then Director Lee Ji-won changed her words in her final remarks, saying, When I earlier answered the question about ratings I forgot that Woo Young-woo exists and said highest rating, but what's important about numbers? She added, This is a work made with the passion and sincerity that these actors and I poured out. We worked fiercely and must go and do it. It would not be an exaggeration to say I poured everything I had into it. I'm sure it'll be fun.
Hearing this, Ju Jihoon said, The director's attitude is our drama. She gathers attention so confidently, then casually calls it a mistake. She's cute and unpredictable. Someone like that wrote the script and directed, so I think it's a work that's fun, emotional, and has unpredictable excitement.
Meanwhile, ENA's Monday-Tuesday drama Climax will premiere on Monday the 16th at 10 p.m. on ENA, and will also be available on KT Genie TV and Disney+.
[Photo] Reporter Min Kyung-hoon
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