‘Ogem2’ Jo Yuri “Senior Im Siwan, inspired by his actions rather than advice” [DA:Interview②]

Singer and actress Jo Yuri mentioned her chemistry with senior Im Siwan.

During a recent interview for the Netflix series ‘Squid Game’ Season 2 held at a cafe in Jongno-gu, Seoul, Jo Yuri said, “When I first met my seniors during the script reading, it felt like watching TV. I was so nervous. I even asked senior Park Sung Hoon, who was sitting next to me, ‘Is it okay to be this nervous?’. My senior also said, ‘I‘m always nervous.’ Even while eating on set, I thought to myself, “Who am I eating with right now?”“ she joked.

‘Squid Game’ season 2, which was released at the end of last year, is a story about the fierce confrontation between ‘Ki-hoon’ (Lee Jung-jae), who returns to the game after vowing revenge, and ‘The Frontman’ (Lee Byung-hun) who greets him, and the real game that begins again. Along with the stellar cast including Lee Byung-hun, Lee Jung-jae, Gong Yoo, Lee Jin-wook, and Im Si-wan, Jo Yu-ri is also proudly included in the lineup.

Jo Yu-ri, who joined the new season, gave a passionate performance as ‘Jun-hee’, a pregnant woman who believes incorrect investment information from her boyfriend ‘Myeong-gi’ (Im Si-wan) and loses a large sum of money before participating in the game. Due to the nature of their relationship, Jo Yuri clashed with Im Siwan the most and had the most conflicts.


Although Jo Yuri and Im Siwan both started out as idols and grew into actors, they said they didn’t have any particularly related conversations on set. Jo Yuri said, ”It was a drama filming set, and we had a lot to talk about related to the project, so we focused on talking about the drama and our characters.“

She said about her senior Im Siwan, ”Rather than giving him specific advice on what to do, I felt a lot from watching his actions. We practiced together when we were preparing for a scene, and I was also stimulated by watching him practice alone. I thought he was a truly amazing person.“ She added, ”He really took care of me, even when we were eating or at small moments. I thought that when I become a senior, I want to take care of my juniors like Im Siwan.“ He expressed his respect, saying, “He is a perfect person both as a person and as a senior.”

Jo Yu-ri expressed her gratitude, saying that she learned a lot from working with not only Im Si-wan but also her seniors. She said, “I learned a lot from watching how my seniors did things on set. In particular, I respected Kang Ha-neul because he greeted me brightly as if a light bulb had turned on when he entered the set. He was a great help to the atmosphere on set. I thought that I should do that too.” She also said, “There were parts where I personally grew. When I was filming the web drama ‘Mimicus’, I acted while harmonizing with my co-stars, but I felt a lot of emotions in particular while filming this time.”

Jo Yu-ri said, “I found acting a lot more fun through ‘Squid Game’. It made me want to film more projects. My seniors told me that the ‘Squid Game’ filming site was a really great set. “Because we filmed it fun, we were able to have more fun,” she said. “I like action movies and dramas, and I also like thrillers. I liked ‘Squid Game’ since season 1 came out, and I watched it several times. I really like this genre, so I want to try it again,” she expressed her enthusiasm. Regarding her next project, ‘Variety’, she was careful with her words, saying, “I didn’t audition, they offered me the part. It’s a project that the company is discussing, and nothing has come out yet.”

She also plans to continue her singing career without missing a beat. Jo Yu-ri said, “Rather, I’m clear and have no worries. I love both music and acting. I won’t give up and I’ll keep going,” and added, “I’m trying to release a new album as soon as possible in the second half of this year. Please look forward to the new album as well,” he said.

Jung Hee-yeon, Donga.com reporter shine2562@donga.com
Photo courtesy of Netflix