Actor Choo Young-woo shared his tumultuous acting journey.
On the 18th, Choo Young-woo appeared as a guest on tvN's ‘You Quiz on the Block’.
On that day, Choo Young-woo revealed the story of how he passed the entrance exam for Sejong University but had to retake the year. He recalled, “I got accepted to Sejong University as a current student. But I received a call saying my acceptance was canceled. They even returned my admission deposit. It turned out I didn’t know the tuition payment deadline had been moved up.”
He continued, “I had become friends with my classmates and even watched performances with the professors, but I couldn’t enter the school. I filmed a congratulatory video at the academy and received congratulations from my friends, but I had to call my teacher and say, ‘I think I need to retake the year.’”
He reflected, “It felt like the world was collapsing. I had put in a year of effort, and it was my first goal, so when that evaporated, all my motivation for life disappeared.”
After retaking the year, Choo Young-woo entered HanYang University. He mentioned that he attended over 100 auditions, saying, “I went to almost every audition in South Korea from 2021 to 2022, and I got rejected from all of them. Even getting rejected is a talent.”
Choo Young-woo, who auditioned for shows like ‘Shuroop’, ‘Penthouse’, and ‘Hwanhon’, said, “I often heard the question, ‘Are you really from HanYang University?’ at auditions. I was so bad at acting. Comments like ‘I need to work harder’ and ‘I need to practice my expressions more’ are still fresh in my memory. I was desperate.”
He added, “My father said, ‘If you don’t become an actor, our family isn’t wealthy, so you’ll have to work to make a living. Shouldn’t you at least prepare for a certification?’ I got upset and said I would act until I die. I said it didn’t matter if I couldn’t make money.”
He reflected, “Looking back now, I’m very grateful. Anyway, having a short-term goal like auditions made me live each day diligently. So, I think my acting had to improve.”
[Lee Se-bin, Star Today Guest Reporter]
