Actor Hyun Bin [Chae Ki-won/10Asia]

10: So after so much studying about megalomaniacs, what do you think is the line that separates a 'normal man' from a megalomaniac?
Hyun: It's just a matter of seriousness. Everyone is mad in some sense. I think it's all about figuring out for what and to what extent a person is mad.

10: Then, do you think you've 'gone too far' compared with others? (laugh)
Hyun: Well, I don't think I've gone that far. (laugh)

10: It seems people would call you a workaholic.
Hyun: No, this is a special situation. In the early days of my acting career, I used to take breaks for almost 6 months after finishing a drama or film despite having nothing to rely on.

10: You've received a lot of attention since your debut and have continued to see success. What were your thoughts when you first started acting?
Hyun: I started doing plays in high school and continued to do theater in college when somebody asked me to go to an audition and I got signed on for a role. I took a leave from school and did a movie. At the time, I just thought I was acting in front of a camera instead of on a stage. Like I had just found a new space for acting. I would have continued to feel that way if my movies did well, but it got flopped when we were about 60 percent into shooting so I started getting more ambitious. I was on a leave from school, working hard, and I didn¡¯t want to go back to school just like that. So I started preparing for this industry. I also wanted to be compensated for all the time I spent away from school. (laugh) Honestly, it was different from theater but fun in its own way. I started thinking that I wanted to give it a real shot.

10: You sound like you want to be in control of your career, as if you're saying ¡°I will be the one who decides when I'll retire.¡±
Hyun: If I didn¡¯t want it for myself, I would have just given up. (laugh) But I met some good people at the time and I was able to continue working. I¡¯m always grateful that I¡¯ve been blessed with good people around me.

Actor Hyun Bin [Chae Ki-won/10Asia]

10: To have good people around you, they have to like you first.
Hyun: They made me like them. I¡¯m not the type of person who says things like, ¡°I love you¡±. (laugh) But I will call them and ask them how they¡¯re doing every now and then. I don¡¯t go out and hang out with certain groups of people, I just keep in touch with people that I have worked with.

10: What do you do in your free time after you've finished a project?
Hyun: I get rid of everything from my previous role. I only look at things for my next role after I¡¯ve gotten rid of the things related to my previous role. I feel like I¡¯m not giving it my all when I pay attention to other things, even just for a few days, so I try not to look at other projects or shoot commercials when I¡¯m working on something. I sometimes I get into trouble because of that. (laugh) When I finish a project, I do things that I didn¡¯t have time to do and when my next project has been set, I prepare for it. If I need to exercise, I exercise. If I need to play the piano, I play the piano.

10: When you say you ¡°get rid of things¡±, it feels like you¡¯re not using the things you¡¯ve gained from the experience or naturally have in your talent. You have your good looks, but you neither try to discourage it nor flaunt it.
Hyun: To be honest, I¡¯m not conscious about it. If there is anything that I do for my appearance, it is that I try to watch my weight a little. You might find this hard to believe but I weighed 80 kilograms on the first episode of ¡°My Name Is Kim Sam Soon¡±. I usually lose about 4.5 kgs by the time I finish a project, so I start off with a little extra weight. Then I¡¯ll weigh 76 kgs even if I lose some weight. (laugh) Other than that, I balance my muscle mass according to the circumstances. If there is a scene I need to work-out for, then I'll get rid of body fat and fill the body weight with muscle. But in case of ¡°The World That They Live In¡±, I felt that a television drama director wouldn¡¯t have time to go to the gym, so I didn¡¯t work out at all.