Hong Jong-hyun "'Even if I wasn't an actor, I wouldn't have been an office worker'"

“Because it is a genre that is familiar to viewers, I thought it was important to have a natural appearance so that viewers could relate to it. I tried to act comfortably.”

Hong Jong-hyun, who first challenged office water with the Disney+ original series 'Race', said this. 'Race' is the story of Park Yoon-jo (played by Lee Yeon-hee), who has no qualifications but gets a job as a contract worker at a large company due to his passion, and struggles to survive at work while being embroidered in a recruitment scandal. Starting from the last 10 days, two episodes are being released every Wednesday. Hong Jong-hyun takes on the role of Ryu Jae-min, the ace of a large corporation who knows how to enjoy a work-life balance.

Ryu Jae-min in the play is a person who values work-life balance. Jonghyun Hong explained, "I thought it would be nice to clearly show the difference between how I look when I work at the company and when I meet friends. Then, when Jaemin is more immersed in his work, the change will be more noticeable. "

Hong Jong-hyun revealed that he built his character by asking people around him who were working. He said, "Because I've never experienced it, I asked my office workers about simple things like what their daily routine was like while living in a company and what they thought about working. It wasn't too different from what I thought. I thought that all people are similar." Then he said, "There were friends who worked without putting their heart into it, there were friends who worked fun without stress, and there were friends who seemed efficient like Jaemin."

Hong Jong-hyun confessed that filming the dinner scene was difficult. He laughed, saying, “There are a lot of scenes of drinking out or drinking. At first, I was very worried. “The more we filmed, the more natural it became. As we progress towards the second half, there is a scene where Jaemin's sincerity is revealed. Before that, he was Jaemin who was casually talking and talking about something. I paid attention to that part because it was a scene where Jaemin's emotions were shown a bit.” told

Through this work, Hong Jong-hyun and Lee Yeon-hee were able to work together as 'close friends'. Lee Yeon-hee took on the role of Park Yoon-jo, who worked at a small public relations agency and joined a large company as a contract employee through the non-discriminatory recruitment 'Spec Out Project'. Hong Jong-hyun said, "(Lee Yeon-hee) is an older sister, but she was comfortable like a friend. Actress Kim Ye-eun, who appears as another best friend in the play, is also an older sister. I' m the youngest, but I filmed comfortably." He continued, "Before the filming started, we had a lot of time to read the script and meet up. We talked about the script, ate, and had a drink. The three of us had a comfortable relationship before the filming. I am more grateful for the position,” he said.

Hong Jong-hyun, who indirectly experienced work life through acting. When asked if he could have actually become an office worker, Hong Jong-hyun replied, "Even if I hadn't become an actor, I don't think I would have had a job. Everyone has different inclinations, don't they ?" "While some people feel happiness and satisfaction in their arranged life, I can't stand those things. Rather, I think I would have done something with a lot of changes. I think I would have done something related to travel or something related to animals because I like animals." "he said. He laughed, saying, “If I told him to do it now, he said he couldn't do it, I think I would have done it without saying anything.”

When asked what his dream was as a child, Hong Jong-hyun replied, "The first dream I seriously thought about was a model and actor. Before that, I was a veterinarian. When I was in middle school, I thought I would become a Veterinarian, so I studied hard." He continued, “When I was transitioning from middle school to high school, I thought I wanted to be a model or an actor.

When asked what his current dream is, he replied, "There is nothing grandiose. I do not expect to receive any awards for any work I do. I want to do what I want to do as an actor for as long as I can. " When asked what was the driving force that enabled him to enjoy and work, he said, "I don't think it would have been possible if I had worked hard to achieve something and had the desire to continue working on a project. Even when I went into filming, I didn't even say that I was in a hurry. I think I naturally changed my mind. If I just think that there is no work right now, I'm the only one who is stressed and lost. I have to spend that time well so that when I meet a new work, I can pour everything into it. .Thinking like this made me feel more relaxed and at ease. This is the reason I can live well in a positive way.”

Reporter Kim Ji-won, Ten Asia bella@tenasia.co.kr