Song Ha-yoon and Lee Dong-hae, will the modern version of ‘Youngsim’ work?

The nostalgic cartoon ‘Youngsimi’ returns. While expectations are high for the story of Yeongsim and Wang Gyeong-tae, who meet for the first time in 20 years, the visuals, which are somewhat different from the original, are attracting attention. Can ‘Modern-day Youngsimi’ capture the hearts of viewers?

On the afternoon of the 15th, a production presentation for Genie TV's original 'Oh! Youngsimi' was held at the Ramada Hotel in Guro-gu, Seoul. An online live broadcast was also conducted. Actors Song Ha-yoon, Lee Dong-hae, Lee Min-jae, Jung Woo-yeon, and MC Eun-hyuk attended.

'oh! ‘Youngsimi’ is a bickering romantic comedy drama about Yeongsim (played by Song Ha-yoon) and Gyeong-tae (played by Lee Dong-hae), who meet again after 20 years, going from childhood friends to adults. A realistic, relatable story has been added to the emotions of the original cartoon movie 'Youngsimi'.

On this day, Song Ha-yoon explained, "This is the 'Youngsim' we knew when we were young. We portrayed how Youngsim lives 20 years later." She added, "Currently, Youngsim is in her 8th year as a variety show producer and is still a very lively character."

Since the original ‘Youngsimi’ itself was a cartoon that received a lot of love, the burden must have been great. Song Ha-yoon said, "I felt burdened by the name and a lot of pressure. I tried to make my voice sound like the cartoon 'Youngsimi' and be seen as a bossy kid. I filmed with almost no makeup on. I had dark circles and hair that was scattered." “We can’t do the same thing with Yeongsimi, but we tried to make people feel the nostalgia for Yeongsim in our memories,” he said.

Lee Dong-hae, who returns to the small screen after 9 years, plays the role of Lee Gyeong-tae, who becomes the CEO of a hot startup. He said, "It was a moment when I chose 'Youngsimi'," and "It was interesting to think of the cartoon 'Youngsimi' and the thought of playing 'That Gyeongtae.' It was my first time acting in a long time, so I was both nervous and excited without knowing it."

He continued, "I was wondering how I could bring entertainment to more viewers. It was both a joy and a burden to play Gyeong-tae, whom I grew up watching as a child. I think Gyeong-tae will be able to feel a new way of thinking, 'This is how he grew up.'"

Song Ha-yoon and Lee Dong-hae boasted ‘perfect’ chemistry. Song Ha-yoon said, "Donghae made me feel comfortable while filming. He was very tolerant and accepted any ad-libs I did. I felt like I had known him for a long time."

Lee Dong-hae also said, “I had fun throughout the filming,” and “He kept giving me ideas about not only his own photos, but also my own. Since we were the same age, there were no difficulties. I think we filmed comfortably like friends without any pressure.”

Lee Min-jae appears as Lee Chae-dong, a junior producer who has a crush on Young-shim. This is a character that did not exist in the original work. He explained, "In the past, Yeongsim had Gyeongtae, but now she has Taedong. She stays by Yeongsim's side and loves her unrequitedly. She doesn't bother to hide her feelings and goes straight ahead." In addition, in order to play the role of a producer, he said, "I studied the role played by actor Kim Soo-hyun in the drama 'The Producers'."

Jung Woo-yeon plays the role of popular YouTuber Wol-sook. On the surface, he is a childhood friend who has been close to Youngshim since their school days, but it is a 'love-hate' relationship that secretly puts Youngsim in trouble behind the scenes. Jeong Woo-yeon, who had not seen the original 'Young-sook', said, "I found out about it after asking my mom. I didn't know it was a famous cartoon. Wol-sook bullies Young-shim a lot, so you will enjoy watching this part."

'oh! ‘Youngsimi’ will be released for the first time on the 15th at 10 PM on Genie TV, Genie TV Mobile, ENA, and TVING.

Ten Asia Reporter Kim Seo-yoon seogugu@tenasia.co.kr