Lee Yeon-hee "I feel comfortable thanks to 'Helper' after 'marriage'"

"I wanted to change it, and there were many people who worked in public relations around me with short haircuts. They didn't have time to care about their hair, so it seemed that a lot of them wore short hair. He said it seemed like a good way.”

Lee Yeon-hee, who first challenged office water with the Disney+ original series 'Race', cut her hair short with a short cut. Lee Yeon-hee, whom I recently met at a cafe in Sogyeok-dong, Seoul, had short hair even though the filming ended last December. As an actress who was considered a 'synonymous with innocence', Lee Yeon-hee's short hair was 'unconventional' to the public. Lee Yeon-hee said, "I like the short cut style. I searched and chose a lot of designs. Instead, it was a bit difficult during filming. (Because my hair is growing) I had to cut it all the time, so my friend who was in charge of my hair had a hard time." When asked if he would stick with the short cut style, he laughed, saying, "It's a little uncomfortable. Depending on how you style it, you can look younger or look older. I'm growing it right now."

'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 embroiled in a recruitment scandal. Starting from the last 10 days, two episodes are being released every Wednesday. Lee Yeon-hee took on the role of Park Yoon-jo, who worked at a small public relations agency and joined Sae-yong, a large company, as a contract worker through the non-discriminatory recruitment 'Spec Out Project'.

"I wanted to try it because it contains the story of today's young people who are working. I haven't had a job, but I thought it was a drama that any office worker can relate to. I also thought that the story of Yoonjo and the people who grow up because of him was fun. He's a friend with a lot of passion, and I thought he was cute and lovable. I didn't know if it would turn out well or not, but his personality when I bumped into him was attractive."

Although Yoonjo is second to none in terms of passion, he suffers from many absurdities at work because of his lack of qualifications. Yunjo struggles to prove her worth while getting embroiled in a hiring scandal. Lee Yeon-hee felt that Yoon-jo, who showed tears and was honest in expressing emotions, was both similar to and different from herself. He said, "I tend to cry a lot while watching dramas and movies. Yoonjo is a bright, positive and hard-working friend, but in society, people only look at his specs rather than his abilities and immediately exclude him, so I thought he must have had a hard time."

“Yoonjo was born in the 90s and is from the MZ generation, but I was born in the 80s. It was difficult when I read the script of the scene where Yoonjo was scolded by the team leader and cried. Haha. If it were me, I'd go to the bathroom and cry, but Yoonjo was different. It's different for each person, but when I asked around, I heard that friends these days are more honest with their feelings.

Lee Yeon-hee sought advice from people around her and read recommended books for more realistic office worker acting. When asked how the life of an office worker, experienced indirectly through her work, is different from the life of an actress, Lee Yeon-hee answered as follows.

"The funniest thing was that everyone got together and thought about the lunch menu rather than talking about work. We became like that while filming. Haha. It was fun to feel united while drinking afterward. But I think commuting to and from work is really difficult. Learning more freely than office workers. You can rest when you want to rest and work when you want to work. Workers can't rest when they want to rest, and I thought it would be difficult to have to rest together when everyone else is resting. I thought I should adjust my own pace well. In that sense, why are my friends like that these days? I understand how you separate work and private life.”

Lee Yeon-hee, who is about to debut 20 years ago, recently took on the stage in a play. He said, "The play was also a good experience. Standing on stage is a little nervous and nervous, but somehow it was fun. It was the first time I started acting."

“I can’t forget the first performance. I was excited, excited and excited. It was the first time I felt the feeling of the audience looking at me, and it was powerful. I think standing on stage itself is a valuable experience. I practiced really hard for 4 months. I did. I did 10 hours a day. I promised myself that I would put in that kind of effort when preparing for acting in the future."

Lee Yeon-hee looked back on her life in the entertainment world, reflected on herself, and made up her mind. “I was inexperienced in my 20s, but I was full of passion. Haha. Back then, I realized how grateful I was for the things I took for granted and the things I didn’t know. I think. If I had countless experiences left in my 20s, now I want to share my thoughts with more people and create enjoyable work. I've been acting for a long time, but I've never been satisfied. Challenges are my driving force, and what I can get through challenges is Curiosity about what it is is also the driving force. If I don't take on a challenge, I feel complacent. Acting makes me grow."

Lee Yeon-hee married in 2020. He said, "After getting married, I felt more at ease. Having someone I could lean on during times of anxiety made me feel more at ease. The fact that I have a helper by my side to support me makes me think that I have to work harder." When asked if he had any regrets about putting down the image of the nation's first love as time went by, he laughed, saying, "There is no such burden. It's good that you created such a title. It's not like everyone has the title of the nation's first love," he laughed. He also said, "I've already put it down. I think it was a title when I was in my 20s. Now I'm thinking about how I can make my name known again."

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