Actor Park Hae-soo (44) left a strong impression once again with his life performance as a witness.
The Netflix series 'Bad Relationship', released on the 4th, is a crime thriller depicting the intertwined stories of six individuals caught in a bad relationship they want to escape from. After its release, it not only topped the 'Today's Top 10 in South Korea' series category but also reached 5th place in the global TOP 10 series (non-English) category within three days.
Moreover, it recorded 3.6 million views (the number of views divided by the total running time of the work) within just three days, achieving a remarkable feat of entering the TOP 10 list in 37 countries.
'Bad Relationship' is the first series work by director Lee Il-hyung of 'Prosecutor's Odyssey', featuring characters with different stories and desires, including the witness (Park Hae-soo), the lead (Shin Min-a), the loan shark (Lee Hee-joon), the street thug (Kim Sung-kyun), the glasses guy (Lee Kwang-soo), and Yoo-jung (Gong Seung-yeon), depicting their process of falling into the trap of bad relationships in an interesting way. Park Hae-soo played the role of a witness who witnesses a mysterious accident in the middle of the night, showcasing intense acting.
In an interview conducted on the 9th in Seoul, Park Hae-soo said, "I watched the work a few weeks before its release, but I couldn't really enjoy it due to the pressure. After it was released, I watched it again," adding, "Each of us has our own role in each episode. There were aspects I hadn't seen before, so I enjoyed it. I was concerned about whether my changes were well expressed, and I discussed those parts with the director. There was pressure to ensure the character was well-structured. Rather than focusing on the points of character change, I thought about what choices the character makes, how their direction narrows, and what goals they pursue."
Regarding the flood of positive reviews for his acting, he said, "I'm trying not to get too excited. I don't look for it much, but when people around me talk about it, I check it out, and it seems they viewed it positively," showing a humble attitude by adding, "I think my character is well-received because there are many changes."
When asked about his reason for appearing in 'Bad Relationship', Park Hae-soo replied, "When I first read it, all the characters were strong, and I liked the story that flowed without letting me breathe with only villains. But when I read it a second time, I realized that the character who breaks the bad relationship is someone who appears weak and has trauma. In some ways, it felt like a black comedy. It seemed foolish and like a fable. I thought it would be interesting if expressed well. From a distance, one can laugh at the choices of foolish people. The director mentioned 'Fargo' before we started, and I found it amusing how the wrong choices of humans look ridiculous."
Regarding the various changes he showed in the drama, he said, "The physical changes made it easier. Since I was wearing a mask as a burn victim, the pain naturally came out, and as the situation became more intense, my goals became clearer, which I think made it come out naturally."
He continued, "The most I struggled with was when I met the glasses guy. I wanted to give him a feeling of being a bit slow and like a sociopathic country boy. I talked a lot with the director to create a feeling that he was an adult but lacked intellectual capacity. At that time, it was cold, and I bought earmuffs, which matched well with the outfit, so the character naturally leaned more in that direction. I was grateful that Lee Kwang-soo had a playful energy that made it easy to accept as a co-actor, even if it seemed lacking."
Following 'Squid Game', Park Hae-soo showcased another round of sharp cursing acting. He joked, "I practiced hard. I can't even imagine it in my daily life. The writer wrote it well."
He then confessed, "As I played the witness, it became emotionally difficult as the story progressed. I felt like I was breaking a taboo. Cursing while drinking holy water or in front of a cross felt uncomfortable and weighed on my heart. What made it easier was that I felt like I was wearing a mask. After filming, I tried to cut it off quickly when I got home."
As a Christian, Park Hae-soo said, "It was uncomfortable to say harsh words to someone. In fact, I prayed a lot. To act evil well, one must be good. I'm not that good, but I need to show evil accurately. So I prayed a lot to express evil accurately. I didn't want to justify or rationalize it."
Previously, Park Hae-soo's cursing acting as Jo Sang-woo in the globally popular Netflix series 'Squid Game' became a meme.
He commented, "The fact that it became a meme means it was a topic of discussion, and many people found it funny. It was something the character did in the drama, but I found it amusing," adding, "I wonder what kind of meme will come out of this work. It feels a bit strange to teach cursing to foreign audiences. My character does curse a lot."
He continued, "It seems that the director and writer often give me characters that are naive, impulsive, or have dual aspects. I also find it interesting to play characters with great amplitude or twists, characters closer to my nature since my theater days."
[Yang So-young, Star Today Reporter]
