Actress Kang Hye-won, formerly of girl group IZ*ONE, said that ‘Friendly Competition’ was a turning point in her acting career.

The STUDIO X+U drama ‘Friendly Competition’ (Planned by: STUDIO X+U / Produced by: YLAB FLEX, STUDIO X+U / Directed by: Kim Tae-hee / Scriptwriters: Kim Tae-hee, Min Ye-ji), which will be first aired on February 10th, is a mystery girl thriller surrounding ‘Seul-gi’, a transfer student at Chaehwa Girls‘ High School, a top 1% school in Korea where fierce competition for college entrance takes place, her friends who reveal their individual desires, and the suspicious death of her father, who was a member of the CSAT committee.

Kang Hye-won plays Joo Ye-ri, who receives attention for her gorgeous looks rather than her studies at Chaehwa Girls’ High School, which only accepts the top 1%. In the midst of fierce and bloody competition, Joo Ye-ri‘s efforts to survive in ways other than studying are one of the elements that enrich the fun of ‘Friendly Competition’. At this point, we asked Kang Hye-won directly about ‘Friendly Competition’ and the charm of ‘Joo Ye-ri’.

Kang Hye-won did not limit Joo Ye-ri’s charm to her pretty appearance. She explained, “Beyond her ‘prettiness’ on the outside, Ye-ri is a charming character with a strong personality.” “Even when faced with difficult situations, instead of being discouraged or staying still, she always tries to find her own way to survive.”

She continued, “Even if she‘s not on the good side, I liked the fact that Ye-ri is a character who knows how to move people’s hearts. She is quick-witted and sometimes acts pragmatically, but if you look at Yeri‘s entire life, you can’t hate her completely. ”That‘s why my affection for Yeri grew stronger as time passed,“ she said, stimulating curiosity about how Yeri will use the people in the play and what Yeri’s narrative is that makes her impossible to hate.

Kang Hye-won reportedly prepared various external stylings to portray Joo Ye-ri, a celebrity at Chaehwa Girls‘ High School. She added, ”Ye-ri is a child who is obsessed with how she looks on the outside. In addition to just putting on makeup, I tried to maintain the tension throughout filming because I wanted to portray Ye-ri’s anxious psychology and emotions of trying to maintain her appearance,“ saying that she tried hard to immerse herself into the character of ‘Joo Ye-ri’ not only in her appearance but also on her inner self.

She also talked about the appeal of ‘friendly competition.’ Kang Hye-won said, ”When I first received the script, the story was tense and interesting. The stories of each character, including Yeri, Jay, Seul-gi, and Kyeong, were interesting,“ and explained, ”The fact that we could show different chemistry between the actors while taking on a new challenge of the ‘girl thriller’ genre was also a selling point. I thought that there would definitely be areas where I could grow through this, so I chose this project.“

The different relationships between Yoo Je-yi (played by Lee Hye-ri), Woo Seul-gi (played by Jung Soo-bin), Joo Ye-ri (played by Kang Hye-won), and Choi Kyeong (played by Oh Woo-ri) in ‘Friendly Competition’ are one of the factors that make fans look forward to the drama. Kang Hye-won said, ”Yeri‘s attitudes toward Jay, Kyeong, and Seul-gi are all different. “I tried not to miss those detailed parts, like the way I speak or look at the other person, that make you feel how they’re thinking of each other,” she said, raising expectations about what kind of chemistry each combination will bring.

Lastly, when asked what kind of work she thinks ‘Friendly Competition’ will be in her life, Kang Hye-won said, “‘Friendly Competition’ is a turning point where Kang Hye-won shows more growth as an actress and a new side of herself,” adding, “I hope you enjoy the various sides of me that I‘m showing through this work.” Attention is being paid to how Kang Hye-won’s acting career will change starting with ‘Friendly Competition’.

Photo by STUDIO X+U ‘Friendly Competition’

Reporter Lee Seul-bi, Donga.com misty82@donga.com

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.