Actor Lee Jae Wook, who recently wrapped up his successful drama “The Alchemy Of Souls” with part 2, has talked about filming the drama, his role, and more.
In the drama, he played the role of Jang Uk with whom the actor spent a very meaningful time as he walked and continued to grow as an actor.
There was also responsibility and pressure on being the main character leading the 30-episode story, but he shared opinions on the spot and resolved them one by one. He said,
It was a work that I had never seen in Korea and I thought it was a work that I could try working on as Lee Jae Wook. If I say I wasn’t worried, it would be a lie. I was half-confident.”
In the previous season, Lee Jae Wook appeared in the role of Jang Uk, the young master of the Jang family in the country of Daeho. The young master born from a tragic love affair was between the chaos that people all over the country were talking about. He met Mudeok (played by Jung So Min), who had the soul of Naksu (the sorceress-a soul shifter), and gets caught in a whirlwind of fate. In Part 2, the drama depicts the story of three years later of Jang Uk, who was revived with an ice stone when he was at the end of his death.
He spent three years catching soul shifters without love or friends. Jang Uk of “Alchemy Of Souls” Part 2 was portrayed as being cold and lonely. Lee Jae Wook said,
Jang Uk in the part 1 was playful and similar to me with his positive aspects. Part 2 was difficult, but there were many interesting and going back and forth moments.”
The actor also revealed about going through emotional changes. He said,
Three years later, I approached him (Jang Uk) as a new person, not the Jang Uk of the previous season. Just looking at the outfit, the mood shift was clearly shown. I also became depressed and my mood became serious. When I looked at the script, everything went dark, but I tried not to be depressed because our screenwriter’s work was bright and romantic.”
Lee Jae Wook recalled his first meeting with his character Jang Uk and said,
I’m not a strong person either. There are still many things that I lack.
When I first met Jang Uk, I found it difficult to portray him. I thought I had a lot of work to do. Since it was my first time working in the genre of fantasy romance drama. I tried to accept the difficult and unfamiliar situation rather than taking it as a challenge.”
When asked about what kind of person was Jang Uk in Lee Jae Wook’s eyes, he revealed,
A person who doesn’t have anything but lives on one belief. I thought he had suffered a lot from within. Fortunately, he met Naksu and grew up, and I think what Uk needed was someone who would love and care for him.
He didn’t get this from any person until Naksu comes into his life and fills the lack of love.
I think I’ve grown up and got to know the world even though I’m lacking in part 2. He may be the only person in Daeho who opened his eyes.”
He revealed an interesting episode when filming an action scene, saying,
As I spent a long period of time filming, I experienced various situations at the filming site. Unscheduled filming occurred depending on weather conditions and monitoring results.
At each time, I shared my opinions with director Park Joon Hwa. Action scenes were also created after discussions.
Originally, there was a scene where a wire was attached to my arms and I had to pull it in both directions, but I wanted to make it come out as it was out of control.
It’s a scene where there was a lot of discussion about whether to do it by myself or to use CG. I said, ‘I’ll do it myself,’ and they believed me. It’s the scene where people are most suspicious of me on if I really personally acted on it.” (laughing)
It did not take long for Jang Uk to meet Naksu and reach the highest level of mastery. Lee Jae Wook’s action with CG has also developed rapidly, from his profound eyes and movements using his long arms and legs. There was also a desire to immerse in it directly without acting as much as possible. Lee Jae Wook said,
It won’t be an exaggeration if I say that I practiced more than the lines on the script.
The action scene where I use a gun or knife is heavy and there were chances of injury, but it was safely filmed under agreement with the martial arts team.
The pre-practice period was long, and there were many things that the martial arts team changed according to my taste.
Since I’ve experienced it, I think I’ll be able to show you a much better appearance next time.”
What do you think of Lee Jae Wook’s acting as Jang Uk?
Source (A)
The very best ! I am so impressed by him. He is also such a prime example of what I call a facial actor. He can act with only his facial expressions. Not many can do this.