“Trustworthy actor” Oh Jung-se shared his thoughts after completing his latest project.
The JTBC Saturday-Sunday drama “Everyone is Fighting Their Own Worthlessness” (hereafter referred to as “Mo-Ja-Mu-Ssa”) came to an end on the 24th. While it started with a modest 2.2% rating (Nielsen Korea, nationwide), it steadily climbed as viewers praised writer Park Hae-young’s powerful writing, director Cha Young-hoon’s delicate direction, and the actors’ stellar performances. It ultimately finished strong, hitting a series high of 5.3%.
Oh Jung-se shared, “I spent a precious amount of time on a precious project. During the final shoot, I even felt it was too short and wished there had been a 13th episode. Time flew by because I was with such wonderful people. I feel the work was truly fulfilling, and personally, ‘Mo-Ja-Mu-Ssa’ has made this year a valuable one for me.”
The drama is praised as a well-made piece that offers quiet comfort. It looks directly at the inferiority and wounds people often hide or deny due to societal pressure, depicting the growth of characters who heal themselves and find true happiness not through “grand success,” but by “finishing their own race.”
Oh Jung-se added, “Personally, I’ve never felt so worthless that I retreated into a shell, but I have resonated with the emotions of this work for a long time. I’ve always believed that not having work or things going wrong doesn’t mean I’m lower, worthless, or a failure, but rather that it’s part of the process of growing. Positive thinking is one of my greatest assets. When things are out of my control, I just flip the switch in my mind to get rid of the stress. I think that positive mindset helped. I take valid criticism to heart and let the baseless hate slide, using it as a stepping stone for my own growth.”
Oh Jung-se played Park Kyung-se, a director at Go-bak Film and the husband of CEO Ko Hye-jin (played by Kang Mal-geum). Although he is a “successful” director with five feature films under his belt, he experiences an internal crisis after the box office failure of his new film, “The Second Sister Without Arms.” Packed with low self-esteem, a sense of entitlement, and intense inferiority, Kyung-se constantly bickers in childish ways with his 20-year friend and aspiring director Hwang Dong-man (played by Koo Kyo-hwan) and clashes with his wife. However, Oh Jung-se brought the character to life with an irresistible human charm, earning him praise as a “lovely loser.” His unique ability to seamlessly switch between black comedy and serious drama once again proved why he is a “trustworthy actor.”
Regarding the role, Oh Jung-se said, “At first, it was easy to approach the character, but he wasn’t like me. I’m not the type to be jealous of others or struggle deeply when I fail at work. Kyung-se’s emotions were entirely driven by inferiority. I’m grateful for all the descriptions given to the character. In the process of meeting Kyung-se, I felt that his actions, lines, and situations themselves were permeated with ‘loser-ness.’ I hoped that even if he made wrong judgments or actions, he would eventually find his way back and be loved by the viewers.”
When asked about the difference between this and his previous works like “When the Camellia Blooms” and “When Life Gives You Tangerines,” he explained, “The script was so interesting that my primary goal was to stick to it as much as possible. I wanted to be a bridge that could deliver the great emotions I felt directly to the viewers. However, about 20 to 30 percent into filming, my thinking shifted. Since Kyung-se has so many lines, I realized that while delivering the dialogue 100% is important, it’s even more crucial to find freedom within the role, even if a single letter or word changes.”
