Kim Tae-hee Wants 'Iris' to Become Turnnig Point

Actress Kim Tae-hee said Monday that she had been severely hurt by a controversy over her acting ability.

"I admit that there are problems in my acting. But I want to see 'Iris' mark a turning point in my acting career,'' said Kim amid cheers in an interview with Yonhap News, referring to the TV drama now being broadcast on KBS TV. "I have hardly been shaken by groundless rumors but the dispute over my acting is most painful.''

Kim, 29, is said to be one of the most beautiful actresses in the country. She received a bachelor's degree in fashion design at the prestigious Seoul National University.

Kim rose to stardom through her portrayal of an evil stepsister in "Stairway to Heaven,'' the SBS TV series, in 2003.

"I have a complex about myself. After starting my acting career, I found my future bleak. Still, I feel it very difficult to act,'' said Kim who reportedly achieved perfect scores in every subject during her three years in middle school in Ulsan, the southeastern industrial city.

She is now playing the role of a profiler at the state intelligence agency in "Iris,'' where she falls in love with a colleague agent played by actor Lee Byung-hun. The drama's viewing rate surpassed 30 percent last week.

Credit to: sahds@koreatimes.co.kr
source: koreatimes.co.kr

Chung Jun-ho's Role in 'Iris' Turning Point in Acting Career

"Jin Sa-woo can control diverse feelings. This character brought about a turning point in my acting career," says actor Chung Jun-ho, 39, who plays a spy in the KBS TV drama "Iris." Chung's role contrasts sharply with his previous comical roles in "My Boss, My Teacher" and "The Last Scandal of My Life."

Chung's acting talent shines in the action scenes of "Iris." We met with Chung on the filming set of the drama at a shopping mall in southern Seoul. "I'm having fun because I can show a new side of my acting talent, and the drama itself is huge," said Chung.

Chung looked kindly and even playful when he had just entered the set, but when he appeared with makeup completed, his look perfectly represented his character, Sa-woo, who agonizes over killing his friend.

Chung has also lost significant weight since he started filming the drama. He said, "I've lost 5 kg recently. Sa-woo is going through a roller coaster of emotions now. He's very anxious. I lost weight to better portray him. There is no stopping him now that he has killed his friend because that was his agency's order. It was the order of Director Baek San, who will probably become very scary later."

In episode 6, Sa-woo fired a gun at a jet with his friend, Hyun-joon (Lee Byung-heon), on board. It is the biggest crisis of Sa-woo's life and the reason he changes as a personality. Chung said, "He has committed something really huge, because if he hadn't shot Hyun-joon, Seung-hee would have been hurt. When I saw the script I wondered if a person can do this even when someone from above orders it. It was hard to portray this. But it's just a drama. It's a drama about an organization of cool-headed people. So I just accepted it and acted."

Chung added, laughing, "If I were Sa-woo, I would never do that." In the beginning, Jin Sa-woo was more cold-blooded than he is now. Chung has infused his character with a human touch, making "Iris" more riveting.

He said, "Sa-woo is a more rational, shrewd and reasonable guy than he seems to be. He does his best to beat Hyun-joon, who is always a step ahead of him. But since 'Iris' is a drama with a grand scale and all of its characters are too stiff, I wanted to add a human touch to it. What Sa-woo said to Hyun-joon at the nightclub was entirely ad-libbed by me. I wanted to make Sa-woo look more down-to-earth. He acts more proactively because now he and Hyun-joon have no other choice but to part ways."

What makes the cool-headed Sa-woo more down-to-earth is that he is unable to utter a word in front of Seung-hee, who he fell in love with at first sight. Chung said, "Sa-woo can't speak properly in front of a woman he loves. He has lost to Hyun-joon even in love. But now that he believes that Hyun-joon has died, he wants to get everything under his control in order to feel justified. But what he feels for Seung-hee now is not love, but compassion." read more

source: KBS Global