Kim Ji-hoon’s all-out action scene “My whole body hurts, I couldn’t get my energy back for over a month”(Return to the Palace)
Actor Kim Ji-hoon of SBS ‘’Gwigung’ has become a king for the first time since his debut.
The new SBS Friday-Saturday drama ‘Gwigung’(written by Yoon Soo-jung/directed by Yoon Sung-sik), which will air on Friday, April 18th at 9:50 PM as the follow-up to ‘Treasure Island’, is a fantasy romantic comedy about a shaman named Yeo-ri who rejects her fate as a psychic, and Kang Cheol-i, an imoogi trapped in the body of Yeo-ri’s first love, Yoon Gap, who face the eight-faced ghost who holds a grudge against the royal family, and their bodies and souls become entangled. Director Yoon Sung-sik, who directed the dramas ‘Mr. Queen’, ‘The Best Lee Soon-shin’, ‘Gaksital’, and ‘Daejoyeong’, and writer Yoon Soo-jung, who wrote the dramas ‘The King’ s Face ‘and’ Cheeky Go Go ‘, have joined forces for the drama.
Kim Ji-hoon said about the reason he chose “Return to the Palace” as his comeback historical drama after 15 years, “I had great trust in director Yoon Sung-sik because I had previously worked with him on the drama” Babel. “I was also eager to appear in a historical drama after a long time, and I especially wanted to try the role of a king.”
Meanwhile, Kim Ji-hoon has stood out as an irreplaceable actor with his unique presence in’ Lee Jae, Soon to Die ‘,’ Money Heist: Joint Economic Zone ‘, and’ Flower of Evil ‘. Accordingly, there is a lot of interest in the character of’ Lee Jung ‘that he will portray through’ Return to Palace ‘. Kim Ji-hoon explained, “A righteous king who truly cares for his people can easily be a predictable and boring role. However, since’ Lee Jung ‘crosses a wide range of genres from comedy to action and romance, I think that it will be a more varied and three-dimensional character than any character I’ ve played before.”
Kim Ji-hoon said that he put a lot of effort into digesting the character of ‘Lee Jung’, and said, “I was a little worried because it was my first time playing a king since my debut, but I’m satisfied because I’ve heard a lot that it suits me well. The part that I paid the most attention to was the tone of the lines and the voice. I focused on acting practice and vocalization to maintain a dignified and weighty appearance, but to avoid the old-fashioned historical drama atmosphere.”
He also revealed, “I analyzed and practiced the script very meticulously because I couldn’t just carelessly express the multifaceted aspects of Lee Jeong-ui’s lonely but upright appearance, the helplessness in the face of the overwhelming fear of Palchukgwi, and the appearance of the father and husband standing up to it.” He also foreshadowed intense action acting, saying, “There’s an important action scene in the latter half of the play, and I filmed it by squeezing out everything I had, including my emotions and physical strength. It was as if I had suffered an internal injury, and I couldn’t gather my energy for over a month and had muscle pain all over my body.”
He also mentioned his chemistry with Yook Sung-jae and Kim Ji-yeon, who formed an unprecedented partnership as a snake-shaman-king. Kim Ji-hoon said, “First of all, the chemistry between the two actors was so good that it was satisfying just to watch.” In particular, Kim Ji-hoon talked about his chemistry with Yook Sung-jae, who is foreshadowing a unique ‘king-subject chemistry’ that goes back and forth between the two characters, saying, “Actor Yook Sung-jae not only has a great sense of comedy, but he also has an outstanding ability to absorb any advice he gives and act it out as his own.” He continued, “As the drama progresses, a bromance between Yook Sung-jae and I transcends social statuses. During rehearsals, we freely exchanged impromptu ideas, which created chemistry that wasn’t in the script. I hope you look forward to our king-subject bromance as well.”
Finally, regarding the point of interest in ‘Gwigung’, he said, “It has the weight of a traditional historical drama, but the comedy that explodes when you let your guard down is charming. From the romance between Yoon Gap and Yeo Ri to the creepy exorcism story and exciting action, I tried to bring out various emotions and genres in a fun way, so please show lots of love. I also think that following the emotions of the king I play will be a lot of fun.”
Meanwhile, SBS’s new Friday-Saturday drama ‘Gwigung’, a fantasy historical romance drama that the drama kingdom SBS is presenting uniquely in 2025, is scheduled to premiere on Friday, April 18th at 9:50 PM.
Reporter Jeong Hee-yeon, Donga.com shine2562@donga
This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.
