“‘Mr. Hak’, so I thought there was a surname called ‘Hak’!”

As the Netflix drama ‘Fooled Me’, which has captivated the world, enters its second half, there is someone who has shown a presence that is no less than the lead actors IU and Park Bo-gum. It is Choi Dae-hoon who plays the role of Bu Sang-gil, the head of the fishing village of Dodong-ri, also known as ‘Mr. Hak.

When Ae-soon (IU) gives up on her dream and tries to join Bu Sang-gil‘s new job, he harasses Ae-soon and Gwan-sik (Park Bo-gum) at every turn, and whenever he is in a bad mood or dissatisfied, he habitually says “Hak(과)~씨”. Because he only commits bad deeds such as corruption and illegal activities, he is called ‘Mr. Hak by the townspeople.

As he is the only villain in the drama who uses rough language and acts violently, various social media and community bulletin boards are flooded with ‘Mr. Hak’s ‘memes’ and ‘shorts’.

In particular, the ‘storm’ searches by fans for ‘Mr. Hak’ have revealed that there are 101 people in Korea with the surname ‘Hak’ (郝), which shows how much interest there is in Choi Dae-hoon.

Thanks to this, Choi Dae-hoon rose to become the biggest beneficiary of the drama, gaining the most popularity since his debut in 2007.
If Choi Dae-hoon garnered attention as a villain, ‘The Sleeping Beauty Corps’ draws attention as an ‘angel’. Cha Mi-kyung, Lee Soo-mi, and Baek Ji-won are drawing attention for their strong lives and family bonds with Jeju haenyeo.

The three ‘jamnyeo’, which means haenyeo in the Jeju dialect, are like ‘aunts’ who take care of Ae-soon in place of her mother, Jeom-rye (Yeom Hye-ran), who passed away at a young age.

They are as affectionate as their savory dialect. They risk their lives and dive deep into the ocean to do ‘material’, but they give everything to Ae-soon, whom they consider their ‘family’, and share her joys and sorrows.

Each of them has over 20 to 30 years of acting experience, and they bring balance to the drama while also adding vitality to it.


Reporter Lee Jeong-yeon annjoy@donga.com

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