Actress Park Bo-young has added another masterpiece to her 20th year since her debut.

Park Bo-young received favorable reviews for her convincing portrayal of the story of sisters who switch lives as identical twins Yu Mi-ji and Yu Mi-rae in tvN weekend drama ‘Unknown Seoul’.

Park Bo-young said in an interview after the drama ended, “I was proud to see that the writing was richer than when I first saw the writer’s writing while watching the original broadcast every week.I was happy that so many people loved and supported me.It’s a work that satisfies me in every way rather than leaving me with regrets.”

After tvN drama ‘Destruction’, the focus was on OTT platform works, and ‘Unknown Seoul’ met TV viewers for the first time in 4 years.Furthermore, ‘Unknown Seoul’ was a success in terms of both viewership ratings and buzz.It started with a nationwide viewership rating of 3.6% and ended on a high note, recording a peak viewership rating of 8.4% in its last episode on the 29th(Nielsen Korea).

Park Bo-young said, “I searched when I opened my eyes in the morning.It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to see real-time reactions.Fortunately, there were a lot of good reactions, so I was able to search without worry,” and expressed her joy by saying, “I had confidence in the drama itself.The reason I wanted to appear in ‘Unknown Seoul’ was because I had confidence in the script.I approached the project with the thought that I just had to do well.”

Although she says, “Filming two roles by myself wasn’t easy,” Park Bo-young grew as an actress through “Unknown Seoul.” She shared behind-the-scenes stories and hardships of filming, saying, “I realized that I hadn’t been calculating my acting.I was the type to adjust my acting based on the other person’s reactions.So when Mi-ji and Mirae were together, it was difficult because I had to calculate and act alone.Especially the movements.I didn’t know when and how to move on my own.It was my first time doing this, but I improved a lot thanks to it.”

He continued, “During our first meeting, the director said, ‘Even though they play two roles, I hope you don’ t make Mi-ji and Mirae too different.’He even said,’ Think of them as one person.’He wanted me to go into great detail.So I worried a lot about how to express Mi-ji and Mirae without making the gap too wide.” He talked about the process of creating the twin characters.

“There were details that only we knew.For example, when Miji ties her hair up, her side hair comes out, and Mirae fills her eyeliner all the way to her mucous membrane to make her eyes look more distinct, and Miji also has slightly visible freckles.When she was dating Lee Ho-soo(played by Park Jin-young), we even considered whether to cover Miji’s freckles or not.Even her short hair and Miji’s wigs are different.Mirae cut it more neatly, and Miji dyed her bleached wig again to give it a rough look.”
Regarding the two-person lines, he said, “During every shoot, I wondered, ‘Will I be able to memorize them?’ However, the lines written by the writer were so everyday that they were easy to memorize.Compared to the amount of lines, it wasn’t hard to memorize them.”

“I did my best in every project, but the response to ‘Unknown Seoul’ was different.I played twins and acted twice, but I was surprised(by the favorable reviews).Before the broadcast, the director showed me the first episode in advance to build my confidence.However, I was more confident and worried.I wanted to look like Mi-ji and Mi-rae, not Park Bo-young 1 and 2, but to me, they looked like Park Bo-young 1 and 2.I was also flustered because the tone of my voice heard on set was different from the tone of my voice that came out.I realized that I had to act with more difference than I thought.However, after the broadcast, I was relieved to see many viewers who said that Mi-ji and Mi-rae seemed like completely different people, and that reaction is the most memorable.”

Among the twins, he said he felt more comfortable playing Miji.He explained, “Miji is a character who expresses herself outwardly, so it was relatively easy.She’s an extension of my bright image.However, I had to restrain myself a lot while playing Mirae.I didn’t have many expressions and had to suppress my tone.” He continued, “I think I’m Miji when I’m out in public, and Miji when I’m not.We both played them by maximizing parts of ourselves.”

While introducing herself as “a daughter like Miji”, she said, “I’m the second of three sisters.When I look at Mirae, I think of my older sister.That’s because my older sister is cynical and has a greater sense of responsibility.I’m emotional, but my older sister is rational.That’s why I understood Miji more easily.” She added, “In Mirae’s case, since she has never experienced working life, I was curious whether working viewers would sympathize with the story.I watched Episode 1 with a working friend, and she was really immersed.She said she thought she was going to get PTSD.That’s when I thought, ‘That’s it.’”

“Everyone in the family, from my elders to my brother-in-law, was so absorbed in’ Unknown Seoul ‘that the group chat room was noisy.My father, in particular, used to fall asleep while watching my work, but he didn’ t fall asleep while watching ‘Unknown Seoul’ (laughs).”
Just like Miji, Seoul was an ‘unknown world’ to Park Bo-young.As a native of Chungcheong Province, he said, “I understood Miji’s feelings.When I was young, Seoul was a dazzling place to me.The subway was also amazing, and Seoul was an ‘unknown world’ itself.” He said, “When I started working in Seoul, I felt, ‘This is not easy.’ That’s why I think I enjoyed reading the script for ‘Unknown Seoul’ more.”

“In my hometown, there were many quiet and contemplative places without having to look for them.But in Seoul, it was hard to find a quiet place.I also like the Han River like Miji.When I was having a really hard time, I cried at the Han River Park.Even now, when I’m having a hard time or want to cry, there’s a place I go to.I can’t tell you, but I go there and let it out.When I go there when I’m having a hard time, it’s a place where I promise myself, ‘I’ll never come back here again.’”

Lastly, he said, “I liked that it wasn’ t an ending that was out of touch with reality.It was an ending that I could project myself into and think about,” and “Sometimes, when I was having a really hard time, I would cut my fingernails at night and think that it would be nice if a rat ate them so that a different me would come out tomorrow.That’s why I empathized with the script for ‘Unknown Seoul’ and was comforted by it,” giving it a special meaning.

“When I regret and feel like it was a wrong choice, I look back and realize that I did my best at the time.Like the line in the play, ‘Is it right to only regret?’ , it was ‘the best choice I made to live my life.’ Also, most of the characters have shortcomings and handicaps.The intention of the drama itself is to understand that even people who seem fine on the outside may not be like that if you look closely, and to try to understand this.I was able to look back on myself through ‘Unknown Seoul.’ As an actor, I think I’ve gone up a level while playing twins.”

Reporter Jeon Hyo-jin, Donga.com jhj@donga.com

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