‘Melo Movie’ Choi Woo-shik “♥Acting=My job has made me more scared... A lot of emotional burden” [DA:Interview③]

Actor Choi Woo-shik revealed the burden of acting.

Choi Woo-shik confessed in an interview for the Netflix series ‘Melo Movie’ held at a cafe in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 17th that the more he acts, the more greedy he becomes and his fears grow.

He said, “‘I couldn‘t get a response to‘Melo Movie’,”and“I’m more greedy than ever for this project, and this is the second time I‘ve worked with writer Lee Na-eun after ‘That Year, Us’, and I wanted to show an even better side of myself than in my last work. “I poured myself into it because I wanted to do well, but I became scared, and I was even scarier to see the reaction,” he said.

“Melo Movie” is a romance that depicts a movie-like time when ambiguous youths who want to love and achieve their dreams discover each other, become inspirations for each other, and overcome their own traumas. It is a work in which director Oh Choong-hwan, who worked on dramas such as “Hotel Del Luna” and “Start-Up,” and writer Lee Na-eun of “That Year, Us” joined forces. Choi Woo-shik, who reunited with writer Lee Na-eun, plays Ko Gyeom, who enters the film industry with his love for all the movies in the world, and goes from being a bit-part actor to a critic.

Choi Woo-shik said, “I like acting, but since it became my job, I think I inevitably end up talking about the results. “It’s ironic because I can only continue doing what I love if the results are good,” he said, adding, “Before ‘That Year, We’, I only filmed things like getting hit, running away, killing people, and lying, but thanks to ‘That Year, We’, I showed that I have this side to me, and fortunately, I was able to do two romantic comedies. My next film, ‘Marry Me in Space’, is also a romantic comedy, and I think that’s why I was able to do that (because the results were good). That’s why I feel so burdened and worried. I think a lot because I wonder if they’ll keep calling me. I have to do well and not just stop at what I like,” he said, honestly expressing his concerns.

Choi Woo-shik said that he couldn’t enjoy movies purely and kept analyzing them, so he eventually quit movies. Despite such concerns and burdens, he said that he felt great happiness while working on ‘Melo Movie’. Choi Woo-shik said, “I was happy to meet good people and act. ‘Melo Movie’ is a piece that leaves behind a happy ‘process’, he said. “I think 90% of the set was a playground. Of course, 10% was not the day I had to film my emotions. In the past, I didn’t find emotional scenes this difficult, but now it‘s hard. I think I’m getting more and more greedy as I become more skilled at it. That‘s why I’m having a harder and harder time acting out my emotions,“ he confessed.

In episode 10 of ‘Melo Movie’, Choi Woo-shik said that he cried a lot while reading the script for his relationship with his older brother Go Joon (Kim Jae-wook). Choi Woo-shik said, ”It was a scene where I was laughing and then crying, but it was so hard to control my emotions. I cried a lot while reading it. If I had done it technically, it might have been easier, but it was difficult when I tried to do it, and I felt a lot of pressure.“ He added, ”(Kim) Jae-wook helped me a lot when he saw me not doing well. He is a truly considerate gentleman. He recalled, “He read the letter that Go Joon wrote to Go Gyeom to help me and helped me a lot.”

He also said that it’s always difficult and hard, but it’s good to be able to meet a character who stands at the center of youth. Choi Woo-shik said, “Youth is a time that anyone in the world can relate to, and the range of emotions that can be expressed is really great. Every time I do it, it feels like I’m doing it for the first time and I like it. I’m not bragging, but I have a youthful look, so I feel like a high school student, and I think it’s an advantage that I can continue to do that time.” He added, “I’m getting older and I’m going to become more solid, and I’m looking forward to it, but I’m also scared. In the past, I used to say, “I don’t want to wear a school uniform,” and “I don’t want to come out like a kid,” but I want to keep doing it if I can. In the future, I’ll have to play the role of a manager or a CEO, so I’m worried about how to do it.”

Jung Hee-yeon, Donga.com reporter shine2562@donga.com
Photo provided by Netflix

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