(continuing from interview ①) "'Listen carefully, Jeong Jin-man,' so I can't say certain things in front of the kids." Actor Lee Dongwook praised fellow performers Kim Hye Jun, Jo Han-Sun and Jung Yunha for their work in A Shop for Killers 2, his return after two years.
Lee Dongwook held an interview on the afternoon of the 23rd at a cafe in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. At the event he spoke with domestic reporters about the new Disney+ series A Shop for Killers season 2 (abbreviated as KillShop2).
A Shop for Killers season 2 is a stylish action series in which Jian (Kim Hye Jun) — who became the new head of the mall after a harsh handover — returns to launch a full-scale counterattack alongside the resurrected Jin-man (Lee Dongwook) against the mercenary company Babylon Global. Season 1, an eight-episode series released in 2024, held the No. 1 spot on Disney+ for three consecutive weeks and was hailed by The New York Times that year as "the best Korean series of the year."
On reuniting with the cast after two years, Lee Dongwook said, "It was so comfortable. Everyone seemed to have prepared a lot on their own. I kept thinking, 'Why do they seem more driven than in season 1?' so I felt I had to work harder too. We had maintained friendships before, and meeting again to act was fun — communication on set became much easier than in season 1. Even without deep conversations, we could immediately pick up on each other."
He said, "Everyone came sharpened. Min-hye (played by Geum HanNah), Pa-shin (played by Kim Min) — they're all such talented people, but they had prepared differently this time. Especially Min-hye and Pa-shin have spent more time in Korea, so their manner of speaking changed. People who didn't appear in season 1 or only showed up briefly joined MurderHelp, and they blended in as if they had always been part of it, which was great. Actors newly joining season 2 seem to have prepared a lot, perhaps because they watched season 1's success before joining. As always, I went into it thinking, 'If I do well, it's fine,'" he emphasized.
Lee Dongwook especially noted, "Although they are all excellent actors, I often thought it must have been hard watching Jung Yunha portray Kusunagi. She performed in three languages and had many solo shooting moments. We do action as a team, choreographing together, but Kusunagi is a character who watches and manipulates from behind, so she had many solo shoots and might have felt lonely. I watched the full episodes and I think the actor's efforts will shine through," expressing anticipation.
He also spoke about his chemistry with Kim Hye Jun: "There was an uncle-nephew chemistry in season 1, but I had relatively little screen time opposite Kim Hye Jun. In season 2 there is a bit more time for emotional exchange than in season 1. Jian has also grown. Jin-man thinks more deeply about how this grown Jian should live going forward. Jian's will becomes firmer and deeper, and it will be interesting to see how the uncle who matches that responds."
In season 1 the phrase "Jung Jian, listen carefully" became a catchphrase from being repeated. Will it repeat in season 2? Lee Dongwook laughed, "In season 2 we say 'listen carefully' less," adding, "That much was taught in season 1. It's even in the trailer: Jian says to me, 'Listen carefully, uncle, listen carefully, Jeong Jin-man.' She uses what she learned. So I can't say certain things in front of the kids," he joked, drawing laughter.
He added, "I became closer and more comfortable with Kim Hye Jun. That made acting feel a bit freer. It's not essential, but if two actors have a human bond, it makes working on set more comfortable. When you act while shy, you show consideration for the other person. This time, as episodes progressed, we became a bit closer and more comfortable."
He continued, "Actually, there weren't any major discomforts in season 1 either. She's amazing. Watching her work on set and seeing the finished product, Hye Jun really goes through a lot. Physically, emotionally, and in terms of screen time. She carries things through well, and on set she does it calmly and quietly without once frowning. I thought she was an incredible actor," he praised.
Lee Dongwook also thanked Jo Han-Sun for playing the villain Veil: "Jo Han-Sun had to portray Jeong Jin-man wearing Veil's mask. I was grateful and sorry to Han-seon for that. Fighting humanoid robots and those kinds of scenes were very difficult action-wise. I was thankful and apologetic about that too. Veil's action pattern and Jin-man's action pattern are very different. Although wearing Veil's mask, he had to act like Jin-man, so he researched a lot and asked me many things — even studying motions to dodge punches — which I found remarkable. He discussed the action with Veil the most, and it's hard to do scenes with Han-seon with one eye closed. The sense of distance between actors is most important. Han-seon worked hard, and I felt sorry about that," he repeatedly expressed his gratitude.
He continued, "When we shot the one-scene, one-take on the long iron bridge, we both said we would grit our teeth and do it. Even by screen time it was nearly two minutes of action, so it was physically demanding. If there was an NG, we had to start over, so we worked hard to avoid mistakes. Shooting wasn't easy. The camera rotated 360 degrees while we had to keep moving. We had to be in the frame, and our timing with the other actors had to match, so rehearsals were done slowly: 50% speed, 100% speed — divided and repeated many times. Even in the main shoot, the timing wasn't right and we had many NGs. It wasn't easy to film, but we put a lot of care into it. We even made equipment for that scene," he explained.
(continuing in interview ③)<
[photo] King Kong by Starship, provided by Disney+.
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