'Cinetown' Jung Woo-sung: "Playing the South Korean President in Steel Rain 2 was a burden"

Actors Jung Woo-sung and announcer Jang Ye-won. Photo by SBS PowerFM 'Jang Ye-won's Cine Town' broadcast capture

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Min Jun-young] Actor Jung Woo-sung confessed that he felt "a bit burdened" about playing the role of the South Korean president in the movie 'Steel Rain 2,' which opens on the 29th.

On the 20th, Jung Woo-sung appeared on SBS PowerFM's 'Jang Ye-won's Cine Town' in the 'Cine Invitation' segment.

During the broadcast, host Jang Ye-won asked Jung Woo-sung, "The eating scenes with Kwak Do-won in the movie 'Steel Rain' were a hot topic. Can we expect any notable eating scenes this time as well?"

Jung Woo-sung replied, "Unfortunately, Kwak Do-won and I are in an antagonistic relationship this time, so there are no eating scenes. We chew on each other's emotions. There will be emotional eating scenes."

Regarding the movie 'Steel Rain 2,' which opens on the 29th, Jung Woo-sung said, "(About the roles of North and South Korea being switched) Kwak Do-won said it felt like he was wearing his own clothes. As for me, since I play the South Korean president, I felt a bit burdened."

He continued, "I tried to faithfully carry out what the character's concerns were. There is an image of the profession that the audience expects. They would expect the image of a person in power, but the president was not portrayed that way," he added.

He then stated, "I am someone who thinks an authoritarian president is unnecessary, so I tried to approach it from a different interpretation."

He also described his character 'Han Gyeong-je' as "a lonely person who, while being a party to the Korean Peninsula issue, cannot truly be a party and can only be a mediator, carrying a sense of regret."

When asked by a listener, "How long will you maintain your good looks?" Jung Woo-sung humorously answered, "I will maintain them for life."

He added, "I think aging well is important. Aging gracefully is an abstract concept, but I believe it means accepting time naturally and faithfully growing older as I am now."

Regarding Kwak Do-won, who plays the North Korean Guard Command chief in the film, Jung Woo-sung said, "Among actors who have played North Korean characters like Gong Yoo, Hyun Bin, and Kang Dong-won, Kwak Do-won fits right in. He has opened a new horizon," eliciting laughter.

He continued, "During the script reading, a new North Korean dialect was born, and I pointed at it while laughing heartily. I said, 'Your dialect will decide the fate of this movie.' I thought it was a new language. Fortunately, during filming, the nuance was well matched to the point that people said, 'That must be a North Korean dialect,'" he shared.

Finally, Jung Woo-sung comforted the movie market, which has been stagnant due to the novel coronavirus infection, saying, "Given the timing, I hope everyone watches Steel Rain 2 safely and takes care of their health."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.