Actor Park Eunbin expressed trust and affection for the team "The Wonder Fools." Although there was a risk of controversy over the lead actor before the work was released, since the piece was completed after the whole team did their best, she asked, "Please watch the characters with affectionate eyes."
On the morning of the 22nd at a cafe in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, an interview was held with Park Eunbin, the lead actor of the Netflix original "The Wonder Fools." "The Wonder Fools" is a late-1999, end-of-century, comic adventure about neighborhood simpletons who accidentally gain superpowers and struggle to protect the world from villains threatening peace.
All episodes were released on Netflix on the 15th, and Park Eunbin said, "Because it was a project that took a long time to be released, when I looked back until it was actually revealed to the world, so many things flashed by. From the moment I first heard about this project, I decided to do it and gradually added conversations with the director, and those recollections were quite moving. So I was very happy that it was released," she said.
In particular, "The Wonder Fools" took a direct hit when lead actor Cha Eun-woo (playing Lee Woon-jung) was embroiled in a tax evasion controversy just before the release. At the time, Cha Eun-woo reportedly faced an intensive investigation by the Seoul Regional Tax Service's Investigation Division 4 in July last year before his enlistment on suspicion of tax evasion, and was notified of tax reassessments exceeding 20 billion won. Afterwards, Cha Eun-woo filed a "pre-assessment review" to contest the tax authority's decision, but ultimately decided to pay all assessed taxes along with an apology. In that process, the release of "The Wonder Fools" also nearly became uncertain.
When mentioning this crisis, Park Eunbin said, "To be honest, I had been concentrating on filming my next work, "Spooky in Love," for the past three to four months and had no time to worry about anything outside of shooting," and added, "This project started because I trusted the director, and I had enjoyable memories of filming without burdens, so I was spending time trusting the production staff and the team," expressing her trust in the team.
"The Wonder Fools" was directed by Yoo In-sik, who previously worked with Park Eunbin on the ENA drama "Extraordinary Attorney Woo." Reuniting with director Yoo In-sik about three years after "Extraordinary Attorney Woo," Park Eunbin said, "He has truly become a director I respect. He is a good adult as a person, and whereas before we talked about the direction of the work, the story of the work and acting as an actor, now there are times when I want to ask personal questions of him as a mature person. Because we have spent a long time communicating, I feel I have a very good adult in my life. I sincerely respect him, and the director told many good things about me in interviews and chose me again. I was grateful," she said, showing affection.
In addition, actors who appeared together in "Extraordinary Attorney Woo," such as Choi Dae-hoon (playing Son Kyung-hoon) and Lim Seong-jae (playing Kang Ro-bin), also appear in large numbers. Park Eunbin said, "Many of the directing team from "Extraordinary Attorney Woo" also came over, so it started as a familiar set, which was a first-time experience for me. Because I was working again with a familiar team, I could adapt quickly. Needless to say, the actors all really embodied their characters and I think the chemistry was great. Everyone immersed themselves in their characters, and there were energies released and natural ad-libs. The action was sharp, but the chemistry and timing fit perfectly," she boasted about the chemistry.
In the story, Park Eunbin plays Eun Chaeni, a teleporting power user who had given up everything while living with a heart disease she had since childhood. He said he writes a "character note" for every role, and when asked how he interpreted and portrayed Eun Chaeni, he said, "Because there are some cartoonish elements, I wanted to create my own signature acting tone that would come to mind when you think of 'Eun Chaeni,' so I wrote down many of Chaeni's traits," and added, "I wrote things like, 'She feels like the brakes are broken. She doesn't care about the world's judgment and must say everything because she could die soon. She is somewhat eccentric and seems self-centered. If it's outside her interest, she seems indifferent. The default is bluntness; she solidifies her own flow and is unpredictable,'" then opened his notes on the spot and read them, drawing attention.
He said, "This is the first time in 10 years I've taken on such a wild role, and the director let me have a blast in this work," adding, "Honestly, in the works I have encountered, there were always parts where I grew. Each time I met a new character, I was positively influenced and those became turning points that helped me grow. So as I represent more works, my capacity seems to be increasing. If the capacity is full, you have to upgrade, and I think that's the work I must keep doing. I enjoyed filming," she said.
Eun Chaeni's distinctive styling, fitting her setting as a "rambunctious mess," stood out with roots that were not dyed, crooked asymmetrical twin tails, and lively gestures. Regarding the hand movement when teleporting, Park Eunbin explained, "A heroic gesture was needed for that moment, and originally there was a note saying, 'touch the temple with the second and third fingers,' but I thought about what else could be more original. At that time, I felt Chaeni would like rock-and-roll and punk style. With the end-of-century vibe and walking her own way, I thought it could be symbolically meaningful to show the 'I love you' hand gesture rather than the second-and-third-finger gesture, whether to herself or to the world," she explained.
She continued, "Stylistically, I wanted to show that she is a famous local rambunctious mess. I wanted to maintain the reputation of being a 'rambunctious mess,' so I suggested a hairstyle with undyed roots. It was a wig, but even from the back or side you could imagine a look that would invite a back-smacking reaction. I wanted the reason to be visible for calling her a 'rambunctious mess granddaughter,' so I suggested many costume ideas and showed various styles, and they prepared it as it was. I thought asymmetry might suit Chaeni better for the '10:20' hair," she said.
Also, Park Eunbin said, "The clothes I wanted for the scene where Woon-jung (played by Cha Eun-woo) shows his superpower and hangs me from the ceiling were furry clothes. I hadn't thought of it in time, but I heard that the post-production team painstakingly drew and brought each hair to life for that scene. It came out cute and fluttering like a fox tail. We didn't expect the giant cockroach scene to be that realistic when shooting. During filming I wondered, 'Should Chaeni's cockroach be made cute? Would a ribbon make it cuter?' but that seemed impossible," she joked.
She said, "We tried not to miss a single detail in this work. With love for the The Wonder Fools, if there are people who have caught the fever, I dare recommend watching it again; after multiple viewings you might enjoy noticing details you didn't see before," she said confidently.
After "Hyper Knife," which had strong character-driven roles, Park Eunbin recently met the public again with another character-driven work in "The Wonder Fools." When asked whether this reflects her personal tastes, she said, "My tastes are always changing too. I received many different offers and laid out various options, and I picked projects based on timing, luck and what attracted me at the moment, so I can see how it might unintentionally seem that way," and added, "When I stack roles where I have to do something and show something, I can see why people might think that. I also want to do roles where I don't have to do anything. Lately I feel grateful to try diverse experiences and take on different jobs as an actor. I want to keep trying various things without getting tired," she said.
She said, "People often ask why I take on so many challenging roles; I do admit they are challenges. But I don't consider them challenges myself; I think of them as trying something once, an experiment, and I am continually learning what suits me and what work fits me. If it matched someone's taste, I would be very grateful, and if it didn't, please give me another chance and I'll show you," she said with a laugh.
As a superhero story, "The Wonder Fools" contains many superpowered scenes using GC. Regarding the behind-the-scenes of Eun Chaeni's teleportation, Park Eunbin said, "This production had a long production period, and some teleportation scenes were filmed months later even though they are instantaneous. We paid a lot of attention to maintaining tension so that cuts wouldn't be noticeable. Of course we did thorough continuity checks, and it took a really long time. Personally, the 'arm-travel' scene is one of my favorite scenes. Although we sometimes shot with LED panels behind us, we also actually went there, and every effort was concentrated in under-a-minute scenes, so I hope viewers will watch them multiple times," she appealed.
Regarding the one-take scene where Eun Chaeni sits on a bed while Cha Eun-woo, Choi Dae-hoon and Lim Seong-jae fight, she said, "I think that scene was filmed at least three times. It was one of the scenes we prepared ambitiously. Of course there wasn't an inch we didn't work on, but while filming that one-take, I was luckily on the bed, but I also had safety equipment to resist the bed's centrifugal force. The frame was custom-made and had to be held tightly so you wouldn't be flung out. It was a scene that combined many technologies," and added, "Although a lot of CG was used, we also practically and safely installed explosives for some scenes, so I remember focusing on not being surprised and filming hard. Of course, the actors all did their best and it took a long time, and we poured everything we could into it, but the stunt team, post-production team and others who helped also worked hard and I am very grateful," conveying that everyone worked together with one heart.
She emphasized, "About the 'The Wonder Fools' team, everyone really fit well. In that bed scene, I was groggily waking up, but everyone worked hard in their positions to not miss timing, and all that harmony came together to complete this work as a team," she stressed.
A longtime fan of the sci-fi genre, Park Eunbin said, "I have been doing this since I was young, but when I was a child the world where I could appear in sci-fi felt distant, so it was content I mainly enjoyed. As time passed and the era changed beautifully, I was able to appear in a sci-fi work and show a superhero aspect at the end, and I am grateful for that. We actually built an airship and kept filling it with air during filming, and at the end Chaeni makes a decision and takes on the mission that 'to protect people, this hydrogen-bomb airship and I must successfully move.' When shooting that, I somehow felt I had to disappear well and felt a sense of duty. I am grateful to have had that emotional experience. After watching the screener, I commented to director Yoo In-sik, 'Thank you for making me a hero,'" she said with overwhelming emotion.
On wire action, she said, "There wasn't a wire I didn't try this time. I experienced various attachment points to the extent of thinking, 'You can hang a person like this too.' The harness inside was the most difficult for wire support. It has to fit closely to the body so it flies without slack, so it must be tightened. That part was hard," she said, expressing difficulty.
Regarding mixed reactions to the love line between Eun Chaeni and Lee Woon-jung, Park Eunbin said, "I don't think a love story necessarily has to be excluded. Love made us who we are and can push us forward. Viewers expecting genre work might think, 'Does the love line have to be included?' but in this work I felt Woon-jung and Chaeni are people who start love by breaking their limits. It's a story of crossing the fences they each built and naturally invading each other's territories. They seeped into each other, and including all of the The Wonder Fools, I think it's a story where even if others don't recognize them, they remember each other," she said.
Especially because of a scene appearing in the final end credits, some have speculated it hints at season 2. On that, Park Eunbin said, "Talking about season 2 is probably premature. For now, I hope it receives a lot of love. I hope many people watch it; it has just been released and there is time, so I think it's wise to consider what comes next depending on how much accumulated affection it receives," she said cautiously.
She also appealed to prospective viewers who have not yet seen "The Wonder Fools," saying, "The targeting I hoped for this work at first was that people who want to forget the complexities of reality should just put this on. I thought it would be fortunate if it could occasionally make people laugh. I think once you take a liking to and feel affection for these simpletons, you can fully fall into the charm of "The Wonder Fools." If you watch them with a little affection, at the end you will surely feel a little moved and experience the nostalgia of that era. Also, since it includes a superhero story about ultimately saving the world, if you want to enjoy a complex genre in many ways, please watch with some patience," she said, urging viewers.
[Photo] Netflix
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