On May 11, an interview was held with Lee Hyo-je, who stars in the Netflix series ‘Kirigo’.
Lee Hyo-je shared that he was cast in ‘Kirigo’ after an audition and several meetings. “The other roles were already set, so I was thrilled to be the final addition as Hyeong-uk,” he said.
Regarding his preparation, he explained, “I spent a lot of time exploring Hyeong-uk’s inner thoughts. When I approach a character, I try to actually live as that person. Immersion is very important to me.” He added, “I also thought deeply about the stress and oppression of adolescence. I felt my own personality was similar to Hyeong-uk’s, so I tried to lean into that for my performance.”
He also empathized with Hyeong-uk’s distrust of his friends in the show. “I interpreted it as a situation where you have no choice but to be suspicious,” he revealed. “I think I would have acted the same way and doubted my friends too.”
Lee Hyo-je mentioned building special bonds with fellow young actors. “I’ve stayed in touch with friends I met while filming the movie ‘Vanishing Time: A Shrouded Hour’ during my child actor days,” he said. “Because of that, I really cherish the connections I make on set, and I was so happy to act with peers in ‘Kirigo’.”
He continued with a smile, “Even though I was the youngest on set, we got really close. Our ‘Kirigo’ group chat is still active! We keep in touch and see each other often. We’re very close. I’ve even planned to meet Baek Seon-ho when he’s on leave from the military.”
When asked what he would wish for if the ‘Kirigo’ app were real, he answered, “I’d wish to be able to act my whole life until just before I die. If I did that, I feel like I’d never die.”
Released on the 24th of last month, ‘Kirigo’ tells the story of high school students who struggle to survive after being predicted to die due to a curse from a mysterious wish-granting app called ‘Kirigo’.
According to the Netflix Tudum website, ‘Kirigo’ reached #1 in the Global Top 10 TV (Non-English) category, recording 7.5 million views during its second week (April 27 to May 3).
Lee Hyo-je plays Hyeong-uk, the mood-maker of Class 2-4 who loves hanging out with friends. Unable to handle academic stress, Hyeong-uk wishes for a perfect score on his exam through the ‘Kirigo’ app and tells his friends once the wish comes true.
