Park Eun-bin, sobbing after winning the grand prize

Actress Park Eun-bin won the grand prize in the TV category at the 59th Baeksang Arts Awards.

On the afternoon of the 28th, the '2023 59th Baeksang Arts Awards' awards ceremony was held at KINTEX in Ilsan, Gyeonggi-do. Broadcaster Shin Dong-yup and actors Park Bo-gum and Suzy hosted the event, and it was broadcast live on JTBC, JTBC2, JTBC4, and TikTok.

Park Eun-bin shed tears as soon as the winner was named. He then came up on stage and said, "I am so grateful. I think I am receiving this on behalf of the 'Weird Lawyer Woo Young-woo' team. Countless works are created every year, and there are many great people who always do their best and devote themselves, so I would like to receive this award. “I am truly grateful for the award. I think I received it thanks to the many people who loved ‘Woo Young-woo.’”

He continued, "Thank you to everyone who watched 'Wooyoungwoo'. I received a lot of love and attention beyond everyone's expectations. In fact, without your love, I don't think I would be here. I'm sorry. A moment like this never came. “I didn’t know that,” he said, shedding tears.

Park Eun-bin said, "I thought that if I didn't give up on my dream of becoming an actor when I was young, I would become an adult who could receive the grand prize, and I am grateful that I was able to make that dream come true. Trying to understand Young-woo was a good experience that helped me learn a little about the autism spectrum." I hope it works. I didn't have a grand dream of playing a part in changing the world, but I acted in the hope that I could at least have a kinder heart than before, and that I would recognize each person's unique characteristics as diversity rather than as differences. “Thank you for your interest in that step,” he said.

He continued, "It took quite a while to come face to face with 'Woo Young-woo.' I was very afraid because I thought that depending on how I expressed Woo Young-woo as an actor, it could cause great hurt to someone. I was very afraid of people passing by about me as an autistic person and a lawyer. "I needed to check my thoughts at every moment to see if there were any biases I didn't know about. It was a work that I was fortunate to be able to overcome my own frustration and finally finish."

Park Eun-bin said, "The line that says, 'My life is strange and eccentric, but valuable and beautiful' is the most memorable. I was happy to be able to tell this story through Woo Young-woo. Even though it was difficult, Young-woo took a powerful step forward while acknowledging, accepting, and embracing his life. “I want to cherish my steps for a long time. I am grateful and love my mom, dad, and brother who have helped me become who I am today with their generous support since 1996,” he expressed his gratitude.

Taeyuna, Ten Asia Reporter youyou@tenasia.co.kr