Actor Kim Young-kwang (38), who has been running without rest, showed another side of himself in 'Trigger'.
The Netflix series 'Trigger' is a gun disaster action thriller that depicts the story of two men who pick up guns for their own reasons amidst the delivery of illegal firearms of unknown origin and the constant occurrence of gun incidents in South Korea, a gun-free country.
Directed and written by Kwon Oh-seung, who gained attention at the Fantasia International Film Festival with 'Midnight', Kim Young-kwang plays the mysterious helper Moon Baek, who collaborates with Lee Do.
Kim Young-kwang revealed, "As soon as I received the script, I wanted to do it right away. Moon Baek seemed so fun and free, and I thought I could bring it to life well. The other sides that appear later also looked attractive, and I thought it would be cool."
He continued, "If Moon Baek's approach is too intentional at first, the next story becomes predictable. I tried to appear curious as a helper who appears unexpectedly and not intentionally."
Kim Young-kwang challenged gun action for the first time in 'Trigger'.
He said, "I held a gun for the first time in a drama or movie. I remembered a lot of action movies with guns from my childhood, so I feel like I was able to do refreshing action. I received separate training on how to handle firearms from a real special forces instructor. Since I handled various guns, I also learned the proper posture from experts. The character Moon Baek has a lot of freedom, so I was able to handle the gun comfortably without needing to follow too much."
Did he receive advice from Kim Nam-gil, who is called an 'action master'? He said, "I talked with Kim Nam-gil on set and tried to match our actions. Rather than telling me what to do, he let me do it freely. He really loves action and thinks a lot about it. He seems to have good stamina and is great at kicking. There weren't many action scenes where I fought with him, but I admired his serious attitude towards action. He has a lot of experience, so he knows how to make action look good, and I thought I should do it like that too."
Before the release of 'Trigger', a gun incident occurred in Songdo, causing shock.
In response, Kim Young-kwang said, "I feel really sorry, but I don't think it's connected to the work. We filmed this project much earlier and put in a lot of effort to think about how it would look. It's unfortunate, but I think it's quite separate from the work," while cautiously adding, "I didn't want to justify it too much."
He also added, "I am the complete opposite of Moon Baek. I have thought guns are dangerous even before starting this project. I believe such things should not happen. If I had a gun, I would report it immediately. So I resonate with the message of this work."
Moreover, Kim Young-kwang paid a lot of attention to the external aspects to express Moon Baek well. He lost weight according to the terminally ill setting and also had tattoo makeup on his upper body.
He explained, "I lost a lot of weight, about 7-8kg. As we progressed from the beginning to the end, my dark circles became more pronounced, and my cheeks looked more sunken and dark. While filming, I thought the terminally ill setting could justify Moon Baek, so I tried to reduce those visible aspects."
Regarding the tattoo makeup, he said, "These days, stickers come out really well. In the past, they used to draw everything, but I used stickers and added makeup on top. The makeup took about 1 to 1.5 hours. The stickers didn't come off easily, so it actually took longer to remove them. On days when I had back-to-back shoots, I sometimes didn't remove them and went home. There is also a tattoo related to Moon Baek's observant eyes, but it's a shame that it didn't show much."
He also handled English lines, saying, "It was hard. I think I did it wrong, but it got conveyed anyway," adding, "I received coaching from a teacher who lived abroad and paid attention to my pronunciation. I was relieved that there weren't as many lines as I thought."
Kim Young-kwang, who debuted as a model in 2006, has gradually built his filmography after transitioning to acting and is approaching his 20th anniversary next year.
In this regard, Kim Young-kwang said, "I am grateful that I can continue to work like this. I don't place much significance on anniversaries. I live day by day, and I have a mindset of being grateful for what I have and doing my best with what is in front of me. I really want to work hard today."
He will continue his busy schedule after 'Trigger'. The KBS2 drama 'Eunsu's Good Day', which he filmed with actress Lee Young-ae, is set to premiere in September, and the movie 'First Ride', filmed with Kang Ha-neul and Cha Eun-woo, is also set to be released. Another upcoming project is the Netflix series 'Fill Me Up', which he will star in alongside actress Chae Soo-bin.
Kim Young-kwang expressed, "I don't want to rest. I have a lot I want to do as an actor. I don't have a specific standard for what I should do. I want to do everything and do more. I want to work on many projects."
He also hinted, "Lee Young-ae, whom I met in 'Eunsu's Good Day', has a really nice voice. When we filmed together, I could really hear her voice well. She is someone who works with a lot of passion, so I thought I should work hard too," sparking curiosity.
In conclusion, he expressed, "'Trigger' was a project that I thought about and filmed, so I am grateful that it has been well received. I hope there are stories to talk about regarding the work, and I want people to enjoy it. I named the cat I adopted 'Moon Baek', and every time I call that name, I remember the time I started this project. I feel proud that Moon Baek is growing well. So I think I will always remember 'Trigger'."
[Yang So-young, Star Today Reporter]
