My Royal Nemesis has finished preparations to meet viewers.
On the 7th afternoon at the SBS building in Mok-dong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, a production presentation was held for the new Friday-Saturday drama My Royal Nemesis (directed by Han Tae-seop, written by Kang Hyun-joo). The production presentation began with MC Park Kyung-rim and was attended by director Han Tae-seop and actors Lim Ji-yeon, Heo Nam-jun, Jang Seung-jo, Kim Min-seok, and Lee Se-hee, who talked about the work.
My Royal Nemesis is a romance comedy drama like a hair-trigger war between Shin Seo-ri, an obscure actress who becomes "vicious" after being possessed by the soul of an infamous Joseon villainess, and Cha Se-gye, a vicious conglomerate heir called a monster born of capitalism, and it is set to premiere on the 8th.
In the drama, Lim Ji-yeon plays Kang Dan-sim (played by Lim Ji-yeon), an infamous villainess who rose from humble origins to the rank of concubine Hee-bin, and the obscure Korean actress Shin Seo-ri possessed by her soul, and Heo Nam-jun plays Cha Se-gye, a monster born of capitalism who treats marriage as a merger and acquisition; the two villains will show a warlike romance that begins with a chance meeting.
Also appearing are Jang Seung-jo as Cha Moon-do, who is aiming for the successor position of the Chail Group; Kim Min-seok as Baek Gwang-nam, a job-seeking neighbor who unexpectedly forms a bond with Seo-ri; Lee Se-hee as Yoon Ji-hyo, a top star but Seo-ri's unrivaled rival; and Chae Seo-an as Mo Tae-hee, the mysterious matchmaker of the world, who are expected to captivate living room audiences.
On the day, Lim Ji-yeon spoke about her determination to show various sides including action and romance in her dual role, saying, "The biggest reason I chose My Royal Nemesis is that it is a comedy. I met this script when I was immersed in comedy, and it is a big challenge for me," and added, "I always do a lot of dark genre work, so when I thought I wanted to do something bright and lively, I met this. I tried to blend in well on set and perform comedy acting."
Her previous work, Phantom Lawyer, and SBS Friday-Saturday dramas in general are evaluated as box office guarantees. When asked about expectations for ratings, Lim Ji-yeon said, "I guarantee it will be a very attractive drama that will shine brightly without bringing shame to the reputation of SBS Friday-Saturday dramas."
Heo Nam-jun also showed confidence, saying, "When filming wrapped up I told the director that filming was so much fun and it seemed like it would come out well. Won't it do well? I think it's over 20%." Jang Seung-jo added, "The beginning was humble, but the end will be glorious. It will definitely exceed 10%. It might even exceed 15%. We worked hard."
Kim Min-seok said, "I have never done an SBS Friday-Saturday drama. I'm honored that it's my first, and I did two mini-series for SBS and guessed them all right. I fulfilled all the pledges and wore prison clothes and walked around Hongdae," he said. Lee Se-hee predicted, "I found the highlight video even more fun. The script was fun from the start and the director made it even more entertaining. I'll put 15% and add 8%, so 23%."
Lim Ji-yeon said the expected ratings would be, "It seems like it should reach 20%. Given the atmosphere, it seems like it should reach 20%. And ratings are important, but I think it will be a work that will be regarded as a good piece for a long time," and Kim Min-seok, who said his pledge success rate for ratings was high, predicted, "I think it will finish between 18% and 19% based on peak ratings."
My Royal Nemesis is drawing attention as a romance of hatred between an infamous villainess and a vicious conglomerate. Lim Ji-yeon said, "We start with evil, evil, evil, but you will be able to see a meeting of a villainess and a vicious person unlike anything you've seen from actors before. To bring out the hateful chemistry, there was character formation that naturally blended in. I received a lot of help."
Heo Nam-jun raised expectations, saying, "The characters in our drama that appear to be 'evil' on the surface have many things they want to protect, and as they get closer, human aspects are revealed. I think the clumsy charm that appears when you stop seeing only the polished side was expressed very interestingly."
Meanwhile, Jang Seung-jo's performance as another villainous character is also generating anticipation. Explaining his character, Jang Seung-jo added the description 'ambitious man.' Jang Seung-jo had transformed into a chilling villain in his previous work As You Stood By. While expectations are high that he will take on another villain role in this work, when asked whether he could surpass his previous role, Jang Seung-jo confidently answered, "Yes."
He then spoke about the new villainous points in this work, saying, "Being at that point made me curious while reading the script about what other aspects I could show, and I wanted to try this work." Jang Seung-jo said, "Because the character is different, I thought it would be shown differently, and I thought the character had restraint. I portrayed someone who cannot even laugh out loud. Is it the birth of another evil? I prepared hard."
Lee Se-hee, who plays top star Yoon Ji-hyo whose rivalry with Shin Seo-ri stands out, said about playing a top star, "Top star acting? I've never lived that life.." she laughed, then added, "I watched many interviews of people who have been top stars for more than 10 years. I studied that breathing, and my older sister and I tried to match chemistry on set. We signaled 'this is it!' and exchanged glances that worked; it wasn't in the script but we matched it on set."
Kim Min-seok, on playing a manager, said, "I usually look around me, and I remember managers who do their job well. Being good at the job is important, but I think action is important. Even when there was a scene where Seo-ri bleeds that wasn't in the script, I would gesture to the makeup team in the air, 'Makeup team, please wipe the blood here,' 'Excuse me,' and I carried the on-set bag like body painting."
Kim Min-seok also said, "There was a time when the manager changed once, and Ji-yeon nuna asked me what the next shoot was as if I were her manager. I opened the script and showed it to her," and Lim Ji-yeon laughed, "It felt reassuring on set."
My Royal Nemesis will directly compete with Perfect Crown, which airs on MBC in the same time slot. The competition is drawing interest as two works that are similar yet different in genre, so what is My Royal Nemesis's unique strength? Director Han Tae-seop revealed, "Our proposal has this sentence: 'Good women go to heaven when they die, but bad women go anywhere.' Kang Dan-sim drinks poison and dies, and when she awakens in Shin Seo-ri's body, a new second-chance life opens, and the drama's biggest strength is the endless possibilities that happen after experiencing death."
He added, "The writer pleasantly unpacked those things. Within that, Lim Ji-yeon does romance, comedy, and action to an extent that you might wonder if she could do such things in other works, so I can say 'Lim Ji-yeon is the competitiveness.'"
Lim Ji-yeon, who also carries great pressure as the lead, said about her hopes ahead of the show's release, "It is embarrassing, but through this work I did everything I could. I drew out my abilities to the point of wondering if I had to do this much." She added, "I loved Shin Seo-ri so much that I think viewers will feel it. I thought she was a female character I've never seen before, and I devoted myself to expressing that well. Honestly, I'm very confident."
Lim Ji-yeon also expressed gratitude about her chemistry with Heo Nam-jun, saying, "Honestly, I relied so much on Se-gye that I couldn't imagine anyone else but Nam-jun. The character Shin Seo-ri had many burdens and many things to do, so there were many times I was exhausted," and added, "Nam-jun encouraged me a lot as Se-gye, and he was a vitamin that helped me get through the hard set. I was thankful, proud, and it was sad to part. I think those things will be reflected in the drama, and I hope people look forward to it."
Heo Nam-jun also said, "The chemistry was amazing. Of all the actors I've acted with so far, including personality and everything, it was great. As we went along, I felt it became more comfortable and natural while filming. I'm really confident about the chemistry."
Meanwhile, SBS's My Royal Nemesis premieres at 9 p.m. on the 8th.
[Photo] Reporter Min Kyung-hoon
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