[On the Record] Heo Jun-ho, Acting for 37 Years: "People Who Don't Understand Are Difficult"

Actor Heo Jun-ho Interview

Role of Beomcheon in the film 'Cheonbaksa' released on the 27th
Post-dubbing & Chungmuro generation "Market change is inevitable"
"I must visit my father Heo Jang-gang's grave during Chuseok holiday"

Actor Heo Jun-ho (59) will mark 40 years of acting in three years. He debuted as an actor in the 1986 film Blue Sketch. Although he majored in dance at university, he chose acting as his profession. His interest in acting began naturally. Being the son of the late veteran actor Heo Jang-gang, he grew up watching his father perform. Ahead of Chuseok, meeting Heo Jun-ho brought his father vividly to mind. His father passed away when he was 12 years old. He said, "Watching my father, I thought actors were 'people who practice'."

Actor Heo Jun-ho [Photo by CJ ENM]

Recently, at a cafe in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Heo Jun-ho said, "My father passed away during Chuseok," adding, "I plan to visit his grave during the holiday." He added, "The atmosphere strangely becomes subdued every year during Chuseok." He then shared, "This year, the movie Dr. Cheon: The Secret of the Snowy Landscape (director Kim Seong-sik, hereafter 'Dr. Cheon') is being released." He continued, "I hope the initial box office results are good so I can visit my father's grave with a peaceful heart."

"After finishing a project, I forget my roles so quickly it's almost foolish. As time passes, I don't even remember the lines well. Maybe it's because I watched my father closely. Work is work, life is life. I only remember my father practicing acting when I was young. When he practiced without a co-actor, I would step in. That was the right way. Even if you practice like that and shoot, acting is still hard."

Heo Jun-ho said acting is difficult. He said, "You have to keep practicing acting. If something doesn't feel right, you talk with the director, and if you don't understand, you ask again and again. That's how it gets perfected." People who have done one job for nearly 40 years are called 'masters.' Is acting still difficult? He answered with a serious expression.

"Because you have to express someone other than yourself. We don't know what's inside people. Even if you sleep together and wake up in the morning, you don't know what's inside. There are limits to what I can know. I want to transform into another person, but it's my face and my voice. Makeup, lighting, and directorial help are necessary. An actor can never do it alone. Expressing a human being is difficult. Becoming a stranger, expressing a human being?that's hard."

Actor Heo Jun-ho [Photo by CJ ENM]

In the movie Dr. Cheon, Heo Jun-ho plays Beomcheon, an evil spirit who moves through human bodies to hunt spiritual power, showing a strong presence. He recalled, "The script was solid," and "I liked the fast pace more than the content." He accurately understood the functional role of his character in the Chuseok film Dr. Cheon. "It's a story that can be approached warmly. I thought it should be comfortable and easy for the audience to understand without difficulty. I just went straight ahead."

Heo Jun-ho opposes actor Kang Dong-won, who plays Dr. Cheon. Although the action scenes are not many, Beomcheon performs most of the action. He confessed, "Because of the action, I wanted to run away." Yet he added, "I was worried if I could handle it physically, but now the filming system has changed, so I gained confidence."

"In the past, there were times I stayed up all night for 15 days without sleep. I took 10-minute naps in the car. The script wasn't ready. I had to do one move more than ten times. It was physically very hard. But now our level has improved. They film in order. Filming techniques have advanced. In the past, there were many things to be careful about in front of seniors. Now, actors get along so well on set."

When asked until what age he would do action acting, he smiled brightly and answered, "Action? I'll do it as long as they call me. For life."

"I want to keep working (acting). I don't want to achieve something specific. I just do my best. I hope to fall and get up again?that's my desire. Acting is difficult, but I want to keep doing it. After finishing a project, I want to rest a bit, but when I see a good script, I jump in again. Honestly, I don't understand that feeling. For me, acting now is happiness."

'Dr. Cheon Exorcism Research Institute: The Secret of the Snow Scene' stills
[Photo by CJ ENM]

The Korean film industry has undergone numerous changes. There was a time when lines were dubbed in post-production. Film changed from celluloid to digital. Although the online video service (OTT) platform market has grown, the number of theatergoers has decreased. Content production has increased, but complaints of "it's killing us" on set have also risen. These changes were somewhat expected but accelerated after COVID-19. Heo Jun-ho is a generation that has experienced all these changes. As a veteran filmmaker, he was asked about his thoughts on these changes.

"I'm applauding. (laughs) I am from the post-dubbing generation. There was a time when actors gathered in Chungmuro and took one car to the filming location. Now our era is unfolding. It's cool. I think, 'The system I saw in the U.S. is happening in Korea too.' The K-culture era has arrived. But I hope we don't follow Hong Kong's path. For healthy development, it should be for the work, not money. When I'm at home (in the U.S.), people ask a lot about our culture. Maybe because I appeared in Netflix's Kingdom, people recognize me even at the airport."

Heo Jun-ho said living in the U.S. makes him feel the changes more deeply. It's because the perspective from outside hits him directly. He said, "The local theater, Regal Cinema, closed," adding, "Theaters are disappearing in the U.S. too." When asked if he accepts the changes as an actor and whether he welcomes them, he answered, "I knew the times would change like this."

"When multiplex theaters were established, seniors predicted the current era. They said theaters would gradually disappear as the digital era came (from film). I heard that a lot when I was young. In the past, we left the filmed film in Chungmuro, but now we send files from home. Every home has a home theater, and that will increase. OTT is the same."

Actor Heo Jun-ho [Photo by CJ ENM]

When asked about the value and meaning of theaters, and concerns that audiences' views of theaters are not as strong as before, he gave a firm answer.

"That's because the works aren't good. If the works are good, I think people will go back to theaters. The important thing is the work. Spectacular movies are fun to watch on a big screen in theaters. Dramas can be watched on OTT. It will develop further. From now on, management will be important, won't it?"

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