(Following [Interview①]) ‘Unknown Seoul’ is a work that shows the growth of the future and the unknown through a life-changing story, while also conveying a message of humanism through the stories of family and those around them.
The stories of Pink, Ok-hee, Rosa, Sang-wol, Grandma Wol-soon, and her two granddaughters embody narratives that could realistically exist, drawing empathy from viewers. This is cited as one of the reasons why ‘Unknown Seoul’ recorded high ratings.
When asked what kind of comfort she thinks she provided to viewers through ‘Unknown Seoul’, Park Bo-young brought up the intention behind the work.
“The future and the unknown ask each other, ‘Isn’t it comfortable living like that?’ but when it actually changes, it becomes difficult. Other people's lives seem better than mine, but when you look closely, you realize that their lives are not easy either. I hope that the effort to understand that person can ultimately apply to me as well, and I think that was shown dramatically.”
After three years since her last TV drama ‘The Day My House Became a Cat’, Park Bo-young returned to viewers, saying, “I searched every morning when I woke up,” and “It was so long since I could see real-time reactions to the airing.”
“Fortunately, I’m grateful that there were many good and interesting reactions, so it was fun to see them in real-time. I searched a lot. I don’t remember the last time I searched without worrying about bad reviews.”
As a work that received much praise for Park Bo-young's dual role performance, many viewers, as well as Park Bo-young herself, expressed that it could be a life-changing work for her.
“I always do my best in any work I do. However, since ‘Unknown Seoul’ is a dual role, I did double the work, but I think I performed as much as I always do. This time, though, the reactions were a bit different. I felt a bit dazed.”
Since Park Bo-young had a significantly larger role in this work, her family particularly enjoyed it. Park Bo-young said, “My dad used to doze off while watching my works sometimes,” adding, “But he watched ‘Unknown Seoul’ without dozing off even once, and I felt proud.”
“My sister, brother, and brother-in-law all enjoyed it so much that our family group chat was in chaos every day. They would say things like, ‘This part is so good,’ and ‘This scene made me cry,’ providing detailed feedback.”
With a dual role, the romance was also doubled. According to Park Bo-young, “It was a work where it was okay to give my heart to two men legally.” How was the chemistry with her co-stars Lee Ho-soo (played by Park Jin-young) and Han Se-jin (played by Ryu Kyung-soo)? First, when asked who had better chemistry, Park Bo-young dismissed the question, saying, “It’s like asking ‘Who do you like more, mom or dad?’”
“Jin-young and Kyung-soo have very different acting styles. Jin-young’s warm energy grounds the lively character of the unknown. Kyung-soo has an energy that gradually brightens the future without forcing it up from the depths. It was twice as nice to be able to date two men while working on one project.”
The backstory of Kim Rosa (played by Park Hwan-hee) and Hyun Sang-wol (played by Won Mi-kyung and Moon Soo-ah) that was finally revealed in the latter half of the drama was something Park Bo-young was looking forward to while reading the script. She said, “The story was really sad, and I cried while reading the script,” adding, “I hoped that these two would be happy in their next life, but at the moment, when we were filming that part (since I wasn’t in it), I felt a bit relaxed.”
“But I didn’t get to rest as much as I thought. There were many montages. I had to knock on the teacher’s door, bring a petition, and listen to the teacher’s story with Ho-soo. And since we were divided into teams A and B, the other team was busy filming the past scenes, so I didn’t get to rest.” (Continued in [Interview③])
[Kim Mi-ji, Star Today Reporter]
