[EXCLUSIVE] Park Eun Bin, Ro-woon & Nam Yoon Su Talk About Their Characters in 'The King's Affection'

Wednesday, October 20, 2021

Are you into historical drama? In love with romance storyline but need a plot with twists and turns? Netflix ongoing K-drama 'The King's Affection' is your must-watch. This historical drama is based on novel of the same name, tells story of a princess who disguises herself as the crown prince when her twin brother Lee hwi is killed. She has to keep her identity and her affection towards her first love - the prince's teacher Jung Ji-woon 

Over email, we spoke to the main cast Park Eun Bin, Ro-woon and Nam Yoon Su about the drama, characters and also their thoughts working with the co-stars. 

Q: Do you find it difficult to portray the perfect prince character as Yi Hwi as it has 2 characters as a male and female?
Park Eun Bin: Even if the idea of a woman becoming king started from one’s imagination, I thought it was my responsibility as an actor to make the character believable. Rather than drawing a straight line between Hwi as a man and Hwi as a woman, I felt it was more important to make Hwi convincing as a person. So I’m trying not to pretend to be a guy, but to show how natural it was for Hwi to grow up as a man. I’m also trying to give off a genderless vibe. It’s very important for the narrative that no matter how hard she tries, she can’t hide her feminine qualities and that this leads to suspicion and danger. I hope that the audience will not focus on whether she’s a guy or a girl, but just naturally embrace ‘Hwi with this side to her, and also that side’. My hope is that me on-screen would really come across as ‘Hwi’ to the viewers.

Q: Just from the teaser itself, we can see great chemistry between you and Rowoon, So, any traits that you have discovered while working with him? 

Park Eun Bin: He’s an actor who is very passionate and serious about acting, so we share a lot of conversations when we shoot together. I find this helpful because as we deepen our understanding of each other, we can add more depth to the characters’ emotions. Ji-woon has very pure eyes, which makes it even more sad when we film poignant scenes. 

Q: Prince Lee Hwi is skilled at literary and martial arts, so do you face any challenges when shooting those ‘action’ scenes which require you to play swords, archery or do martial arts? 
Park Eun Bin: Although her figure is small, Hwi excels in swords, archery, and martial arts. That meant that I also had to train a lot in order to become true king material. I practiced horseback riding and martial arts, and I’m trying hard to look like someone who was raised as a man. Sometimes it’s very physically draining, but Hwi is a person that has to overcome her limits every time, so I’m working to show you my best performance. 

Q: How would you describe your character Jung Ji-woon in The King’s Affection? 
Ro-woon: I play the Sikangwon instructor Jung Ji-woon, who is Hwi’s royal tutor, in the series. 

Q: We heard that you’re the mood maker on set, so what do you normally do to lighten the shooting atmosphere? And would you think yourself is similar to the character Ji-woon? 
Ro-woon: I’m not sure about me being the mood maker. Rather the overall on-set atmosphere was bright and cheery. So, no, it’s not me who’s the mood maker. As for Ji-woon, I’m not quite sure as to how similar I am with the character. I think I have various personalities, and some of them are shown via Ji-woon. So, I don’t think I can tell how similar I am to Ji-un. 

Q: What was the most memorable scene about your character in the drama? 
Ro-woon: It was when Ji-woon said, “Who says that certain things are just for women. What’s good should be shared by everyone,” because it demonstrates his thinking and philosophy. 

Q: How would you describe your character Yi Hyun in The King’s Affection? 
Nam Yoon Su: I play Yi Hyun in the series. Yi Hyun excels both in academics and martial arts. He’s always soft and gentle, but, at the same time, cannot stand injustice. He is a very reliable and thoughtful character, who knows humility and manners. In short, he’s a good man, who knows what’s right. 

Q: How was it like to work with the co-star in The King’s Affection? 
Nam Yoon Su: We’re still shooting the series, and the on-set atmosphere is so fun and comfortable to the extent that I want to work with the same cast and crew in the next project as well.
Park Eun Bin challenges herself to become a woman king in disguise, a character definitely not easy to come across, and is to portray a cold-hearted and charismatic monarch, putting aside her warm-hearted image from her previous works. Ro Woon, who had many hearts fluttering with his romance dramas set in schools and offices, will also challenge himself, starring in a historical drama for the very first time. The beautiful appearances of the two actors and the chemistry between them had fans waiting and waiting ever since the news of the cast got out.

Now we all can’t wait to see the heartbreaking romance that slowly blooms between the two actors, which will definitely touch our hearts in the middle of a sentimental autumn night. 

photo credit to Netflix

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