‘Oh Jung-se‘s signature innocent character’ is always popular.

Oh Jung-se, who captivated viewers with his clumsy but uniquely innocent acting in works such as ‘When the Camellia Blooms’, ‘It’s Okay to Not Be Okay’, and ‘Uncle’, once again showed off his charm in the Netflix series ‘Mr. Plankton’.

In ‘Mr. Plankton’, which depicts the love and growth of those who live in wealth without connecting with anyone, he played the role of the fifth-generation only son of a long-standing family who struggles to find the bride-to-be, Jae-mi (Lee Yu-mi), who lost her right before his eyes on the eve of his wedding. This character, whose name, ‘Eohung’, is unusual, is all the more special because writer Cho Yong created the screenplay with Oh Jung-se in mind. Oh Jung-se also emphasized, “That‘s why I wanted to do even better.”

○ “I felt comfortable working with actors who were at least 15 years younger than me.”

He said that he wanted to cheer on Eo-heung, who has lived her whole life the way her mother wanted her to, but finally lives her “real life” for the first time after meeting “fun.” He reflected, “It’s because I‘ve gone through similar times.”

“I never lived on my own will until my third year of high school. I really lived without thinking. When I went to a humanities high school and a science high school, I just made those choices without thinking. That’s when I first chose acting on my own will when I was twenty. It‘s like Ah-heung chose fun for the first time.”

He said that he didn’t really mind despite the fact that his juniors Lee Yu-mi and Woo Do-hwan, who portrayed a love triangle, were more than 15 years apart in age.

”I thought that (the age difference, etc.) could be resolved into their clumsy love story. I didn‘t feel any discomfort due to the age difference with these friends on set. Of course, I don’t know about their intentions. Haha!“

○”Acting is like traveling, so I always live and travel“

With his unique good image, he receives particularly good reviews when he plays characters who are naive but innocent enough not to be hated. He said, ”I‘m just grateful that they look at me so warmly,“ but also expressed his desire for new characters.

”As an actor, every actor wants to discover another color of themselves. You can’t live by acting in just one role. You want to be recognized when you take on different challenges. When I try something new and feel burdened, I want to reflect and move forward.”

That’s how much joy I get from acting. He said that’s why he’s been so “prolific” in the past two years, appearing in nine works, including lead and supporting roles as well as special appearances.

“In the past (when I was unknown), there were times when I felt hungry because there were no works. Those times weren’t short, so I think I can only maintain joy when I meet a work. To me, acting is a journey. Even if it’s a difficult journey, I want to go on all kinds of trips. I’m the type of person who can’t enjoy “rest.”“


Reporter Seungmi Lee smlee@donga.com