Lee Dong-gun "I was sick for two days after the release of 'Celebrity', I projected my life into a divorced character"

Actor Lee Dong-gun revealed that he fell ill after the release of the Netflix series 'Celebrity'.

On the morning of the 12th, Lee Dong-gun met Ten Asia at the FNC Entertainment building located in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul and told various stories about the Netflix series 'Celebrity'.

'Celebrity', which was released on the 30th of last month, tells the story of Ari (Park Kyu-young), who jumped into the world where you can make money by becoming famous, and the gorgeous and fierce faces of celebrities. The story of SNS, which is very close to our daily life, and the influencers who reign there as emerging aristocrats are excitingly unraveled.

In the play, Lee Dong-gun took on the role of Tae-jeon. Taejeon is the owner and lawyer of Taegang, a law firm with both money and power. He was not interested in Ari, whom everyone was paying attention to, including his sister, wife, and friend Joon-kyung (played by Kang Min-hyuk), but after one night, he put all his energy into stopping Ari (played by Park Gyu-young).

According to the Netflix TOP 10 website on this day, 'Celebrity' recorded 5.6 million views, ranking first in the Netflix Global TOP 10 TV (non-English) category. It ranked first in 10 countries, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Bolivia, and Peru, and was named in the top 10 list in 52 countries around the world.

Lee Dong-gun said, "It's been a while for viewers to see it, but in fact, I started filming without a break. It took about a year to shoot and a year of post-production. Viewers watching 'Celebrity' will feel like they've been watching it for a long time." said. He added, "I see (ranking) every day. But I was not good at first place. I said I was sad because I was in second place, but I'm happy."

In 2017, Lee Dong-gun married Jo Yoon-hee, who he worked with in the drama 'The Gentlemen of Wolgyesu Tailor Shop'. Then, in December 2018, he held his first daughter, Roa, in his arms. In 2020, after three years of marriage, they divorced by agreement. Jo Yoon-hee took custody.

For Lee Dong-gun, 'Celebrity' is his first comeback in three years since the musical 'Bodyguard'. He said, "People around me worried a lot. They asked me if I wasn't working or didn't see it. It's a question I always get. I was already doing 'Celebrity'. So, I said, 'I finished filming for Netflix' and 'Don't worry.' (The release) was delayed. I believed that director Kim Chul-gyu would make a good script for the fun script."

Also, "I was extremely nervous a week before the release of 'Celebrity.' I think there was a lot of stress about how to look. I don't know if it was like that in the past, but now that it's all public, I can feel the reaction quickly. The people around me are old men. Even though they are old men, there was a wall to approach 'celebrity' at first, but it's fun. He explained, "I got better because he told me a lot of good things."

Regarding divorce in the play, Lee Dong-gun said, "I have never thought about or worry about it. In acting, the life I've lived has no choice but to be reflected. Whether it's a good thing or a bad thing, what I've felt has no choice but to come out. I think this is the process of being shown. So, rather than thinking separately, I wondered, 'Can my current self and my experiences be well projected?', 'Maybe I don't know what this person has?' .

Reporter Kang Min-kyung, Ten Asia kkk39@tenasia.co.kr